STOCK PICKS: Top 5 Fast-Growth for July 28

Each business day, TheStreet.com Ratings compiles a list of the top five stocks in five categories -- fast-growth, all-around value, large-cap, mid-cap and small-cap -- and publishes these lists in the Ratings section of our Web site.

This list is based on data from the close of the previous trading session. Today, fast-growth stocks are in the spotlight. These are stocks of companies that are projected to increase revenue and profit by at least 12% in the coming year and rank near the top of all stocks rated by our proprietary quantitative model, which looks at over 60 factors.

In addition, the stocks must be followed by at least one financial analyst who posts estimates on the Institutional Brokers' Estimate System. Please note that definitions of revenue vary by industry, and this screen does not make adjustments for acquisitions, which can materially affect posted results. Likewise, earnings-per-share growth may be affected by accounting charges, share repurchases and other one-time items.

Note that no provision is made for off-balance-sheet assets such as unrealized appreciation/depreciation of investments, market value of real estate or contingent liabilities that might affect book value. This could be material for some companies with large underfunded pension plans.

American Ecology Corporation(ECOL Quote) is one of the nation's oldest providers of radioactive, hazardous and industrial waste management services.

We have rated American Ecology a buy since October 2005. Strengths such as revenue growth, a largely solid financial position and a notable return on equity influenced this rating. For the first quarter of fiscal 2008, American Ecology's revenue rose by 18.6% year over year. This growth appears to have trickled down to the bottom line, improving earnings per share by 18.5% over the first quarter of 2007. In fact, the company has demonstrated a pattern of positive EPS growth over the past two years. A slight improvement in return on equity can be seen as a modest strength for the company. Finally, while total debt increased slightly year over year, it remains at an almost negligible level.