Zacks.com announces the latest list of top performing Zacks #1 Rank ("strong buy") stocks. The stocks on the prestigious list with the highest returns last week were Innophos Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ: IPHS), Alpha Natural Resources, Inc. (NYSE: ANR), CF Industries Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: CF), The Andersons, Inc. (NASDAQ: ANDE) and McMoRan Exploration (NYSE: MMR). Each of these stocks easily outperformed the S&P 500.

Stocks ranked #1 (Strong Buy) by Zacks have produced an average annual return of +32% since inception in 1988. During the 2000-2002 bear market, Zacks #1 Rank stocks gained 43.8% while the S&P 500 tumbled 37.6%. To learn more about the Zacks Rank, go to http://at.zacks.com/?id=3172.

Here is a synopsis of the last week's best performing Zacks #1 Rank stocks.

Innophos Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ: IPHS) was the top-performing Zacks #1 Rank company last week as shares surged almost 50%. The specialty phosphate producer announced second-quarter earnings of $2.74 per share, which trounced the consensus estimate by almost 215% while reversing a year-ago loss. Net sales moved higher by 73.8% year over year to $264 million from $112.1 million. IPHS stated that selling price increases had a positive impact on revenue across all product lines.

Earnings estimates for this year are currently about 32% higher than levels from two months ago. The company stated that it anticipating and rapidly responding to the dynamic rate of change in its markets.

Alpha Natural Resources, Inc. (NYSE: ANR) announced strong results for its second quarter on Jul 29, as the company achieved it's highest-ever shipments and pricing for metallurgical coal. Excluding items, earnings reached 88 cents per share. That result beat the consensus by almost 63% while improving upon the year-earlier result of 7 cents. Total revenues reached $732.2 million, or 68% better than the prior year's $435.3 million. Coal revenues advanced 63%.

In mid-July, Alpha agreed to be acquired by Cleveland-Cliffs, though recent news reports have indicated that ArcelorMittal is considering a counterbid. In just the past seven trading days, earnings estimates for this year have jumped approximately 13.5% on ANR. The company was a top-performing Zacks #1 Rank for the week ended Aug 1 as shares advanced almost 18.1%.

CF Industries Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: CF) benefited from high selling prices for nitrogen and phosphate fertilizer during the second quarter, helping the company put together year-over-year revenue growth of 37% to a record $1.16 billion. Excluding items, earnings per share of $4.10 eclipsed the consensus by almost 15.2%. It also marked a solid improvement from the previous year. Earnings estimates for this year are up 25% over the past two months, including a gain of 12.9% in the past seven trading days.

For the week ended Aug 1, shares of CF advanced 13.1%, which made it one of the best-performing Zacks #1 Rank companies.