OKLAMOHA CITY--(BUSINESS WIRE)--May 24, 1999--Sonic Corp. (Nasdaq/NM: SONC) today announced that Investor's Business Daily (IBD) has named Sonic to its list of "200 Best Stocks" in its April 30 issue. Of the more than 9,000 publicly traded companies in the U.S., analyzed by IBD in terms of financial and operating results, only the top 2 percent were named to the list. Sonic, based in Oklahoma City, franchises and operates the nation's largest chain of drive-in restaurants. It was the only company in the sandwich segment of the quick-service restaurant industry and one of only six retail restaurant/beverage stocks to make the "200 Best Stock" list. Sonic ranked 139th overall. "Sonic's inclusion on this list validates the company's strength and longevity," said Clifford Hudson, President and Chief Executive Officer. "Our brand is very healthy and continues to grow handsomely. At Sonic, customers find a fun place to eat, where the experience is as great as the meal. Investors view this same experience as a reason for strong growth and industry-leading performance. "Our multi-layered approach, which includes increased media expenditures and an ongoing retrofit remodeling program, really has begun to drive company performance. These proven strategies provide the foundation for future earnings growth, emphasize return on capital, and help us expand the reach of our brand with less risk than a strictly capital-intensive strategy would permit. We are more than pleased to see this kind of recognition from a leading financial publication like Investor's Business Daily." To make IBD's list of the 200 Best Stocks, a company must show strength in a number of key fundamental and technical categories. IBD says these traits are what distinguish the best performing stocks of the past four decades. According to industry data, Sonic has had the highest customer frequency rate in the fast-food industry for several years running, and its strong mid-year results prove it. Sonic recently reported strong second quarter sales and net income. For the first two fiscal quarters ended February 28, 1999, system-wide same store sales were up 8.1 percent, continuing the trend of more than 11 years of consecutive positive same-store sales comparisons for Sonic. Total revenues for the first six months of fiscal 1999 increased 20 percent, while operating income was up 23 percent. "As a result of our retrofit program, product news, more efficient market penetration, increased media expenditures and an evolving strategy in media buying, brand awareness reached new highs during the first six months of the year," Hudson said. "Our strong first-half trends provide important momentum as we approach Sonic's seasonally stronger spring and summer months, and they position us to post another year of record results in August." Sonic is known for its made-to-order food served by carhops who deliver food directly to customers' cars. Sonic has nearly 2,000 drive-ins in 27 states and is the nation's largest chain of drive-in restaurants. More than three-quarters of a million people eat at Sonic Drive-Ins every day.  