The week of July 14 to July 18 is going to mark the official launch of earnings season. Already we have seen Alcoa please the street and set a positive bias, but retail and basic consumer spending still seems weaker than any grand recovery. We also have new banking fears in Europe out of Portugal, and a slowing trend that weighed on markets last week.
Before getting too concerned, just keep in mind that the equity markets in the United States are still less than two weeks from having hit new all-time highs.
24/7 Wall St. has taken an earnings montage on the top 11 earnings reports it will be watching this coming week. There are of course other important earnings to watch out for. Our take is that these 11 corporate reports will set the trend of the entire earnings season for other sectors and competitors.
We have used performance measurement screened from FINVIZ.com and taken the earnings estimates from Thomson Reuters. Color has been added on each company as well. As a reminder, these estimates can change (and some will change) before the formal earnings report.
These are the top 11 earnings we will be watching the most closely in the week ahead.
Citigroup Inc. (NYSE: C) is set to report earnings on Monday. It seems hard to imagine that anyone cares about the earnings right now as much as they would the company getting the latest settlement signed and right-sizing more international operations. Outside of that, we hope to hear if there is any progress in getting to amp up that dividend — finally! Estimates are $1.05 earnings per share (EPS) and $18.93 billion in revenue. Citigroup’s performance so far in 2014 is down almost 10%.
Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (NYSE: GS) reports Tuesday morning and is now a major market mover because it is one of the highest priced Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) stocks — so it has a higher importance in actual direct DJIA weighting than J.P. Morgan about three times over. Outside of earnings, the emphasis is on compensation costs, trading revenue/earnings and investment banking. Estimates are $3.05 EPS and $7.97 billion in revenue. Goldman’s performance so far in 2014 is down just over 6%.
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Intel Corp. (NASDAQ: INTC) is due to report on Tuesday afternoon. It is the king of processors, and the real question now is how much “taking from the future gains” were seen when Intel raised guidance. The fact that it has yet to make any inroads in mobile has been ignored of late. The question is whether Intel can one-up its prior guidance hike again. Its estimates are $0.52 EPS and $13.69 billion in revenue, and the stock is up almost 12% in the past month and up more than 22% so far in 2014.
Johnson & Johnson (NYSE: JNJ) will be a lead-off for the consumer products and medical/drug stocks when it reports on Tuesday morning. The company is valued at a rich 18 times expected 2014 earnings already, so we think a catalyst not already in the stock is going to be required for its next significant boost. Estimates are $1.55 EPS and $18.94 billion in revenue. J&J’s stock performance so far in 2014 is up more than 16%.
JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE: JPM) is the second best bank behind Wells Fargo these days, and now the only issue seems to be the fresh news about Jamie Dimon having throat cancer. There still may be more U.S. Department of Justice and regulatory settlements pending as well, so look for commentary there on that matter. The banking giant is due to report Tuesday morning, and estimates are $1.29 EPS and $23.76 billion in revenue. J.P. Morgan shares are down nearly 3% so far in 2014.
Bank of America Corp. (NYSE: BAC) is the third most important of the big banks now, and it is no longer a DJIA stock. Because of that, and because Citigroup is reporting ahead of it, we almost did not include it as the most important earnings any longer. Earnings are due Wednesday morning, and estimates are $0.29 EPS and $21.62 billion in revenue. The stock’s performance so far in 2014 is down roughly 1%.
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SanDisk Corp. (NASDAQ: SNDK) is due to report Wednesday afternoon, and the independent flash memory giant is now used as a bogey for anything and everything tied to the consumer electronics boom for smartphones, devices, tablets and so on. Its stellar performance also demands that it has to go above and beyond meeting estimates or marginally beating estimates from analysts. SanDisk’s estimates are $1.39 EPS and $1.6 billion in revenue. Its shares are up almost 40% in the last quarter and are up by almost 50% since the end of 2013.
YUM! Brands Inc. (NYSE: YUM) is also due on Wednesday afternoon. While it is not McDonald’s, nor is it a DJIA stock, YUM! represents the ex-McDonald’s casual dining and fast food trends, particularly in China. Estimates are $0.74 EPS and $3.25 billion in revenue. The stock’s performance so far in 2014 is up just over 10%.
Google Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOGL) is having its first post-split report after the close on Thursday. Many investors remain somewhat confused over which stock is which (GOOG/GOOGL). That being said, let’s just say that revenue growth, earnings growth, dominance of search and ad spending are all to be closely watched. Google’s estimates are $6.26 EPS and $15.6 billion in revenue.
International Business Machines Corp. (NYSE: IBM) is among the top DJIA stock prices, making it among the most important despite such a dull no-growth story. IBM’s report is due after the close on Thursday, and its estimates are $4.29 EPS and $24.13 billion in revenue. IBM shares are up just over 1% so far in 2014.
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General Electric Co. (NYSE: GE) is the big kahuna for Friday morning. As goes GE, as goes the economy — and now we hope to get more data on the timing and plans of the upcoming U.S. consumer finance spin-off. Estimates are $0.39 EPS and $36.31 billion in revenue. GE’s stock has seemed stuck, and its performance so far in 2014 is down more than 3%.
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