Schaeffer's Daily Market Blog Features: DaimlerChrysler, Microsoft, Altria Group, Carolina Group, and Reynolds American.

CINCINNATI -- Among the stocks featured in the July 21 edition of Schaeffer's Market Blog are DaimlerChrysler (NYSE:DCX), Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT), Altria Group (NYSE:MO), Carolina Group (NYSE:CG), and Reynolds American (NYSE:RAI). Schaeffer's Market Blog is just one of the many free market commentaries written every day at www.SchaeffersResearch.com - the home of Bernie Schaeffer and Schaeffer's Investment Research. The Market Blog is written throughout every trading day by Schaeffer's financial analysts and traders. They are quick insights to the day's most notable market activity from an options perspective. For additional information about this report or to have it delivered to you free via email every day click on the following link. http://www.schaeffersresearch.com/redirect.aspx?CODE=PROB12M&PAGE=1

Schaeffer's Market Blog for Friday, July 21, 2006:

Below are just a few of today's Market Blog entries. Click here to read all of today's Market Blog. http://www.schaeffersresearch.com/redirect.aspx?CODE=PROB1C&PAGE=1

9:42 AM Pop Quiz for Stock Enthusiasts

Good morning. Yesterday, I threw out a challenge. Which of these companies is not a member of the S&P 500 Index (SPX)? DaimlerChrysler (NYSE:DCX), Halliburton (HAL), Hewlett-Packard (HPQ), Microsoft (MSFT), or Texas Instruments (TXN)?

The correct answer was DCX. At last check, 47 percent of you knew that. Well done!

9:50 PM Free Stock Picks in our Podcast Interviews

Don't forget that many of our observations are available as audio presentations that you can hear on your computer or download from Apple's iTunes Music Store to play on a portable device such as an iPod. To see the full menu of observations, please visit http://www.schaeffersresearch.com/commentary/podcasts/.

Yesterday, Jon Lewis will interview Chris Johnson, our Director of Qualitative Analysis and author of our Monday Morning Outlook.

10:35 AM Microsoft Announces Buyback

Bill Gates is a little bit richer today, not to imply that he was hurting yesterday. The Dow Jones Newswires reported that Microsoft's (NASDAQ:MSFT) market capitalization increased $11.8 billion despite an earnings disappointment. The company reported that quarterly profit fell to $2.83 billion, or 28 cents per share, from $3.7 billion, or 34 cents per share, a year ago. Revenue for the period increased to $11.80 billion from $10.16 billion a year ago. Analysts expected MSFT to report a profit of 30 cents per share on revenue of $11.63 billion. At last check, the stock was up more than four percent at $23.79, after the company announced a plan to buy back $20 billion worth of its stock.

As regular readers know, at Schaeffer's we focus on stocks with performance that runs counter to the prevailing sentiment. MSFT is trading in the same price range we saw in December 2000, so it's hardly one to e-mail home about, yet the sentiment is still positive. Less than one percent of the stock's float is sold short, so short-covering support is unlikely to help prop up the price. The Schaeffer's put/call open interest ratio (SOIR) stands at 0.29, as calls outnumber puts in the front three months of options. This optimism in the options pits suggests that expectations are high, and sideline money, waiting to leap in, might be scarce. And Wall Street expects good things from Redmond's finest. According to Zacks, eight brokerages rate the stock a "strong buy," and two more have it at a plain old regular "buy." Against this are six cautious "hold" ratings and a brace of "strong sell" ratings. There's room for upgrades here, I agree, but more room for downgrades.

The stock has pulled well clear of its 10-day and 20-day trendlines. If it pulls back, watch for signs of support from those trendlines.

11:13 AM NYSE & NASDAQ New Highs/New Lows with Schaeffer's Equity Scorecard

Each day we look at stocks that have achieved new annual highs or lows while sporting an "extreme" Schaeffer's Equity Scorecard rating (close to zero or close to 10). Today we have 51 picks in our list. Three of the bullish picks are Altria Group (NYSE:MO), Carolina Group (NYSE:CG), and Reynolds American (NYSE:RAI). MO and RAI score 8.0 out of 10 on our Schaeffer's Equity Scorecard, while CG scores 7.0, indicating that all three stocks potentially have the strength to rise.

For more information on these stocks or any stock in your portfolio, feel free to visit our Schaeffer's Equity Scorecard feature. Click here to read all of today's Market Blog: http://www.schaeffersresearch.com/redirect.aspx?CODE=PROB1C&PAGE=1

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About Schaeffer's Investment Research (www.SchaeffersResearch.com)

Schaeffer's Investment Research, founded by Bernie Schaeffer in 1981, is a financial information and trading resources company. It publishes Bernie Schaeffer's Option Advisor, the nation's leading options subscription newsletter. The firm's contrarian approach focuses on stocks with technical and fundamental trends that run counter to investor expectations. The firm's website, http://www.SchaeffersResearch.com, is recognized as one of the leading information sources for stock and options traders and was cited as the top options website by both Forbes and Barron's. Click here for more details about Schaeffer's trading methodology: http://www.SchaeffersResearch.com/method.