Zacks Bull and Bear of the Day Highlights: LifeCell, Hudson City Bancorp, Petroleum Development and Hyperion Solutions

Business Wire, March 23, 2007

CHICAGO -- Zacks Equity Research highlights LifeCell Corporation (Nasdaq: LIFC) as the Bull of the Day and Hudson City Bancorp (Nasdaq: HCBK) as the Bear of the Day. In addition, Zacks Equity Research provides analysis on Petroleum Development (Nasdaq: PETD) and Hyperion Solutions (Nasdaq: HYSL). Full analysis of all four stocks is available at http://at.zacks.com/?id=2676.

Here is a synopsis of all four stocks:

Bull of the Day:

Our Bull of the Day recommendation is for LifeCell Corporation (Nasdaq: LIFC). LifeCell Corporation is a leader in the development and commercialization of human-derived, tissue-based products for use in reconstructive, urogynecologic, and orthopedic surgical procedures. The company's leading product, AlloDerm, continues to gain acceptance in the surgical tissue replacement market. We are also excited about the prospects of XenoDerm, a xenograft product, which is scheduled to hit the market in the second half of 2007. We believe LifeCell will position XenoDerm as being suitable for all the procedures for which AlloDerm is currently being used. We see the company posting strong top-and bottom-line growth over the next few years. We are upgrading our rating on LifeCell to a BUY. We recommend the shares up to the $30 level.

Bear of the Day:

Our Bear of the Day recommendation is for Hudson City Bancorp (Nasdaq: HCBK). The recent proxy filing noted a 10.9% average increase in named executive base salaries in 2006, following the 9.3% increase in 2005, which again looks high to us. The 10-K was uneventful. As we discussed in our January 24 analyst note, Q4 EPS [fourth quarter earnings per share] missed our estimate and consensus by a penny (rounded), led by weakness in NIM [net interest margin] (down 15 bps [basis points] sequentially, once again more than we had projected). Average loans were up only 4.5% sequentially (estimated at 3.8% excluding the acquisition), the weakest showing on that front since 2003, in spite of an increased 64/36 mix of purchased vs. originated mortgages.

Analyst Blog:

We are maintaining our Buy recommendation and 12-month target price of $60.00 for Petroleum Development (Nasdaq: PETD) shares. Near-term production and reserve growth is expected to be exceptionally high, due mostly to the company's recent like-kind acquisitions. However, the company's aggressive Rockies development program of over 300 net wells in 2007 is also expected to be a large contributor. In total, we expect full-year 2007 production of 28 Bcfe [billion cubic feet equivalent], up 65% comparably, atop over 500 Bcfe in proved reserves, up nearly 60% comparably. We have adjusted our fourth quarter EPS [earnings per share] estimate up slightly, to $0.61, and our 2007 full-year estimate up over 20%, to $3.98.

After Hyperion Solutions (Nasdaq: HYSL) reported a very solid fiscal second quarter, Oracle swooped in and offered $3.3 billion, or $52.00 per share to purchase the company. At the time, this was over a 20% premium to the share price, and Hyperion's board of directors accepted the offer. We expect shareholders of HYSL to do the same, and the deal should be closed around April of 2007. Based on this acquisition, and the purchase price, we have downgraded shares of HYSL to a Hold from our previous Buy rating, and have instituted a new price target of $52.00 per share, or the pending acquisition price.

Get the full analysis of all four stocks by going to http://at.zacks.com/?id=2649.

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Every day, the analysts at Zacks Equity Research select two stocks that are likely to outperform (Bull) or underperform (Bear) the markets over the next 3-6 months.

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