Schaeffer's S&P 500 Index Hot Stocks Features Guidant, United States Steel, ConocoPhillips, Dana, and Affiliated Computer Services.

CINCINNATI -- Among the stocks featured in the January 17 edition of Schaeffer's S&P 500 Index Hot Stocks are Guidant (NYSE:GDT), United States Steel (NYSE:X), ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP), Dana (NYSE:DCN), and Affiliated Computer Services (NYSE:ACS). Schaeffer's S&P 500 Index Hot Stocks is just one of the many free market commentaries written everyday at www.SchaeffersResearch.com - the home of Bernie Schaeffer and Schaeffer's Investment Research. 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=PRSHS12M&PAGE=1 .

Schaeffer's S&P 500 Index Hot Stocks for Tuesday, January 17, 2006:

A daily feature available on SchaeffersResearch.com is the "SPX Hot Stocks" column. Each afternoon, we will provide a list of the day's top-20 performing stocks in the S&P 500 Index (SPX - 1,283.02) as well as the bottom-20 names. Featured along with this table will be news that is moving some of the securities.

NOTE: Stocks trading under $5 per share have been eliminated from this listing of the top-20 and bottom-20 performing stocks.

All three of the major market indices show losses today, with the SPX currently down 0.24 percent after slipping below the support of its 10-day moving average. Of the 500 components in the SPX, 30 percent of them (148) have dropped.

Boston Scientific (BSX) increased its offer to acquire Guidant (NYSE:GDT) to $27 billion, or $80 per share. The new offer values GDT stock at $42 in cash and $38 in BSX common stock. BSX noted that its bid represents a premium of $3.3 billion, or $9 per share, over Johnson & Johnson's (JNJ) competing bid. The company also noted that GDT shareholders will own roughly 36 percent of the new combined company. BSX's offer also includes an expanded collar to compensate GDT shareholders should the deal not complete by the end of the first quarter. GDT gapped up this morning, and the stock showed a gain of more than 7.4 percent when we grabbed our figures.

On Friday, Credit Suisse First Boston upgraded United States Steel (NYSE:X) to "outperform" from "neutral." The stock made a modest gain of 1.2 percent on Friday, but today it is surging ahead and at last check it showed an advance of almost five percent. In an encouraging move, the stock appears to be advancing, after spending much of this month testing the round-number 50 level, first for resistance and then for support. The stock stood at 52.65 at last check.

UBS started coverage of ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) and Amerada Hess (AHC) at "buy" today, and Chevron (CVX), Marathon Oil (MRO) and Exxon Mobil (XOM) at "neutral." The entire sector is hot today, and the Dow Jones Newswires attributed the action to "fears of supply disruptions due to Iran's standoff with Western nations over its nuclear program and rebel attacks on Nigerian oil producing facilities."

Turning to our tumbling trio, auto parts maker Dana (NYSE:DCN) reported a third-quarter loss of $1.27 billion, or $8.50 per share. The company took charges totaling about $1.2 billion in the quarter, offsetting a $2.4 billion increase in sales. The stock fell to a 30-year low on the news.

Affiliated Computer Services (NYSE:ACS) announced today that it was unable to agree to terms of a possible buyout by a group of private equity investors. The stock had fallen 6.78 percent by the time we grabbed our figures.

And finally... CIBC downgraded Robert Half International (RHI) to "sector performer" from "outperform" today, pulling the stock sharply down and breaching the support of its 10-day and 20-day moving averages.

Click the following link to see a Chart of the SPX 500 Index's Top-20 Percentage Gainers: http://www.schaeffersresearch.com/wire?ID=15012 .

Click the following link to see a Chart of the SPX 500 Index's Top-20 Percentage Losers: http://www.schaeffersresearch.com/wire?ID=15012 .

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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 .