For Immediate Release

Chicago, IL – November 20, 2009 – Zacks Equity Research highlights Principal Financial (PFG) as the Bull of the Day and Sohu.com (SOHU) the Bear of the Day. In addition, Zacks Equity Research provides analysis on Bank of America (BAC), Wal-Mart (WMT) and Sears Holding Corp.(SHLD).

Full analysis of all these stocks is available at http://at.zacks.com/?id=5506

Here is a synopsis of all five stocks:

Bull of the Day:

We are upgrading our recommendation on the shares of Principal Financial (PFG) to Outperform. The company's third quarter operating earnings were much ahead of the Zacks Consensus Estimate, driven primarily by the sequential improvement in domestic as well as global equity markets.

We believe that Principal's strong franchise within the pension sector, which is aided by its diversification both in terms of products and geography, positions it well to benefit

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While Sohu.com's (SOHU) third-quarter earnings beat the Zacks Consensus estimate and were in line with the company s own guidance, the outlook for the fourth quarter was far below expectation. The company's operating expenses have been steadily going up, which we fear could limit the growth in earnings.

Moreover, recent delays in game launches, weak ad spending, which is hurting the brand advertising revenue and intense competition pose a threat. Strength in its online games and portal business are expected to be the strongest drivers for growth beyond 2010.

Currently, we see limited upside for Sohu's revenue and earnings growth in the near term. We downgrade the stock to Underperform from our previous Neutral rating and set a six-month price target of $45.00.Zacks Investment Research

Intelimax Media Inc. is an internet services company focusing on online games, web content and advertising. Using its proprietary gaming and pay-per-click listing platforms, Intelimax has released its own proprietary web properties and social network applications.

The company announced today the signing of a letter of intent with Canada Business Network Services Inc. (“CanBiz”) to represent Intelimax in southeast Asia as its market advisor and intermediary for the purpose of developing new business opportunities in that region of the globe. The first opportunity in Asia that CanBiz is helping Intelimax with will be in the Philippines.

Can Biz will assist Intelimax with introductions, networking, business development discussions and negotiations in the region. They will also pursue projects and business opportunities in the growth and management of industry specific web content, portals, media and advertising. Once specific business has been identified in the region, Intelimax will sign a binding services agreement that outlines

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While Sohu.com's (SOHU) third-quarter earnings beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate and were in line with the company's own guidance, the outlook for the fourth quarter was far below expectations. The company's operating expenses have been steadily going up, which we fear could limit the growth in earnings.

Moreover, recent delays in game launches, weak ad spending -- which is hurting the brand advertising revenue -- and intense competition pose a threat. However, strength in its online games and portal business are expected to be the strongest drivers for growth beyond 2010.

Currently, we see limited upside for Sohu's revenue and earnings growth in the near term. We downgrade the stock to Underperform from our previous Neutral rating and set a six-month price target of $45.00.Zacks Investment Research

Sohu.com Inc.’s (SOHU) third-quarter earnings beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 6 cents. This was the due to its strong online games unit and compelling portal business. Net income on a non-GAAP basis was $40.9 million or 96 cents per share versus $42.8 million or $1.08 per share last year. This was at the high-end of the company’s guidance of 92 cents to 97 cents per share.   Revenues for the quarter were $136.6 million, up 13.2% from $120.7 million in the year-ago period. This was in line with the company’s guidance of $133.5- $137.5 million. Revenues were mainly driven by a 25.8% increase in online gaming revenues to $68.7 million.   The increase in online gaming revenues was due to the higher active paying accounts (APA) and user base expansion, which reflects the growing popularity of Changyou's online games. Aggregate registered accounts increased 46%, while APA increased ...

For Immediate Release

Chicago, IL – September 14, 2009 – Zacks.com announces the list of stocks featured in the Analyst Blog. Every day the Zacks Equity Research analysts discuss the latest news and events impacting stocks and the financial markets. Stocks recently featured in the blog include: Sohu.com Inc. (SOHU), Shanda Interactive (SNDA), Baidu.com (BIDU), Netease (NTES) and SINA (SINA).

Get the most recent insight from Zacks Equity Research with the free Profit from the Pros newsletter: http://at.zacks.com/?id=5513

Here are highlights from Friday’s Analyst Blog:

Sohu.com Cut to Neutral

We have downgraded Sohu.com Inc. (SOHU) from Outperform to Neutral as the stock faces near-term risks due to delay in game launches, intense competition and concerns related to online ad spending.

Sohu is the third-largest internet portal and one of the most well-known online brands in

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We have downgraded Sohu.com Inc. (SOHU) from Outperform to Neutral as the stock faces near-term risks due to delay in game launches, intense competition and concerns related to online ad spending.

Sohu is the third-largest internet portal and one of the most well-known online brands in China. However, its core business of brand advertising and online games faces fierce competition in China from big players like Shanda Interactive (SNDA), Baidu.com (BIDU), Netease (NTES) and SINA (SINA).

Earlier, the company had reported strong second-quarter results with both revenue and EPS beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate. Moreover, it provided better-than-expected third-quarter guidance. However, its performance is expected to be overshadowed the macroeconomic concerns facing China in 2009.

The company had spun-off part of its gaming division Changyou.com (CYOU) in an ADS offering. While this unit is expected to boost user base and market share in

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China's leading online media and gaming company Sohu.com Inc. (SOHU) today said that its spun-off unit Changyou.com Ltd. (CYOU) has launched Blade Hero 2, a new 2.5D martial arts-style, multi-user online role-playing game (MMORPG) with new contents.

Blade Hero 2 is a sequel to Changyou's existing MMPORG game known as Blade Online (BO). One of the company’s oldest games, BO’s peak concurrent user (PCU) reached a new high of 95,000. Blade Hero 2 has begun its closed beta testing and also employs Changyou's graphic technology.

Earnings at both Sohu and Changyou.com came in above the Zacks Consensus. While this was good news, both stocks fell as Changyou pushed back the launch of three new games: "Duke of Mount Deer" (postponed from the fourth quarter of 2009 to the third quarter of 2010), "Immortal Faith" (deferred from the second quarter of 2009 to the first quarter of 2010)

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Cisco Systems Inc. (CSCO) has decided to invest $32 million in South Korean Investment Fund, SkyLake Incuvest & Co. The plan is to invest up to $2 billion into the country’s technology industry over the next five years. The decision was well-timed, as the company may be able to take advantage of the country’s economic turmoil that prompted the government to offer an $11 billion stimulus package in November last year. SkyLake is engaged in funding technology companies through contributions in the form of private equity investments. Its recent investments include Viatron Technologies, which is focused on heat processing technologies for displays; DASAN Networks, a subsidiary of Nokia Siemens Networks, which makes switching and fiber- to-the-home (FTTH) equipment; and Wemade Entertainment Co., which develops online games. Cisco’s strategy is to enter new markets through joint ventures and gradually build its position in the area. This ...

Perfect World Co, Ltd. (...