5 of Last Week's Biggest Winners

What's better than momentum? Mo' momentum.

Let's take a closer look at five of this past week's biggest scorchers.

Source: Barron's.

Winn-Dixie hit the checkout line with a big fat smile. The Southeastern grocery store operator is being acquired by rival Bi-Lo in an all-cash deal. The $9.50-per-share buyout price is a healthy 75% premium to Winn-Dixie's close before the announcement was made public.

Sunrise Senior Living rose after a bullish SeekingAlpha.com article played up the retirement home operator's buyout prospects given its improving balance sheet. A story later in the week indicated that a hedge fund manager with a sizable stake in Sunrise was increasing its position.

VirnetX jumped after speculation began to build that Apple (NAS: AAPL) was being denied a request to reexamine a patent held by the mobile security researcher. VirnetX went on to confirm that a patent reexamination request -- by Cisco (NAS: CSCO) -- was denied by the patent office.

SandRidge Energy gained ground by losing ground. The company sold some of its acreage for a tidier sum than analysts were expecting.

Finally, there's USG. The gypsum materials specialist posted strong gains after a Commerce Report showed the strongest new housing starts data in two years. The news bodes well for USG's drywall business.

It was a great week for these five stocks. If you want to get an early read on some of tomorrow's major gainers, there's a special report on three hidden winners in a booming industry. The report is free -- like this article -- but it won't be around forever, so check it out now.

At the time thisarticle was published The Motley Fool owns shares of Cisco Systems and Apple. The Fool owns shares of and has created a bull call spread position on Cisco Systems.Motley Fool newsletter serviceshave recommended buying shares of Apple and Cisco Systems.Motley Fool newsletter serviceshave recommended creating a bull call spread position in Apple. Try any of our Foolish newsletter servicesfree for 30 days. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe thatconsidering a diverse range of insightsmakes us better investors. The Motley Fool has adisclosure policy.Longtime Fool contributor Rick Munarriz calls them as he sees them. He does not own shares in any of the stocks in this story. Rick is also part of theRule Breakersnewsletter research team, seeking out tomorrow's ultimate growth stocks a day early.

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