The Fool's Look Ahead

By Rick Aristotle Munarriz

October 11, 2008

4 Recommendations

Monday
Fastener distributor Fastenal (Nasdaq: FAST) kicks off the new trading week with its third-quarter report. Wall Street expects earnings to climb 24% to $0.51 a share. That's a welcome growth rate in this nervous environment, but Fastenal should be good for it. The company has topped analyst estimates in each of the past three quarters.

Tuesday
Earnings season kicks in with a ton of quarterly reports. Tuesday's bellwethers include Intel (Nasdaq: INTC) on the tech side and Johnson & Johnson (NYSE: JNJ) on the Big Pharma side. Both companies are looking to post small bottom-line improvements over their year-ago performances.

Wednesday
Financial services take the spotlight on Wednesday, with JPMorgan Chase (NYSE: JPM) and Wells Fargo (NYSE: WFC) reporting. Quarterly showings by investment brokers and banking behemoths used to feel inconsequential. These days, they define the market. Will either company keep gobbling up distressed banks? You may not get a direct answer, but you'll probably appreciate the weigh-in anyway.

Thursday
Intuitive Surgical (Nasdaq: ISRG) should shine on Thursday. The maker of the revolutionary da Vinci surgical robotic arms has beaten Wall Street's quarterly expectations every time since the latter half of 2002. Will it short-circuit this time, or once again land well ahead of the $1.27-a-share profit target?

Friday
Energy exploration giant Schlumberger (NYSE: SLB) puts the exclamation point with its quarterly report on Friday. If you think the week ahead is busy, just wait until the following week.

Until next week, I remain,
Rick Munarriz

What do the unfolding financial crisis and ongoing market volatility mean for your money? The Fool's here with answers. Get the best of our daily commentary and analysis in your inbox simply by entering your email address in the box below.

JPMorgan Chase and Johnson & Johnson are Motley Fool Income Investor selections. Intel is a Motley Fool Inside Value pick. Intuitive Surgical is a Motley Fool Rule Breakers recommendation. Try any of our Foolish newsletter service free for 30 days.

Longtime Fool contributor Rick Munarriz recommends windshield wiper fluid when trying to look forward. He does not own shares in any of the companies in this story. He is also part of the Rule Breakers newsletter research team, seeking out tomorrow's ultimate growth stocks a day early. The Fool has a disclosure policy.

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S&P 500	800.03	+6.32%
DJIA	8,046.42	+6.54%
NASD	1,384.35	+5.18%
Updated: 4:07:36 PM

S&P 500

800.03

+6.32%

DJIA

8,046.42

+6.54%

NASD

1,384.35

+5.18%

Updated: 4:07:36 PM

Comments from our Foolish Readers

Help us keep this a respectfully Foolish area! This is a place for our readers to discuss, debate, and learn more about the Foolish investing topic you read about above. Help us keep it clean and safe. If you believe a comment is abusive or otherwise violates our Fool's Rules, please report it via the Report this Comment icon found on every comment.

On October 11, 2008, at 8:34 PM, USAeconomist wrote: Report this Comment

I thought these people had problems; http://buymyhousebeforethebanktakesit.com, now I think we have big problems... it all started in 2007 http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story/toxic-export-how-us-su... and http://www.slate.com/id/2175724/its coming back to haunt us. I guess the best way to get money into the banking system is to crash your stock market, have everyone sell, and put your money in the banks. So, we are probably better off in the market, which companies are best for when times are bad?
On October 13, 2008, at 11:47 PM, weiwentg wrote: Report this Comment

Well, it looks like Fastenal missed by two cents. To me, that's more or less immaterial. The fact is that they increased revenue 17% from this quarter last year and increased their gross margin by over a % despite high fuel costs. The stock rose to over $40 in regular trading but is down to $38 or so after hours. This is another buying opportunity. Fastenal has been growing despite the recession.

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The Fool's Look Ahead

What do the unfolding financial crisis and ongoing market volatility mean for your money? The Fool's here with answers. Get the best of our daily commentary and analysis in your inbox simply by entering your email address in the box below.

Comments from our Foolish Readers

On October 11, 2008, at 8:34 PM, USAeconomist wrote: Report this Comment

On October 13, 2008, at 11:47 PM, weiwentg wrote: Report this Comment

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