The Fool Looks Ahead

Monday
It's Memorial Day, so if you happen to hear something that sounds like the market's opening bell, it's probably your alarm clock. Why did you set your alarm to go off on a holiday again?

Tuesday
The shortened trading week begins on Tuesday with Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE: BNS  ) reporting. The Toronto-based bank serves 14.6 million customers in 50 countries. That's a lot of real estate to cover in these globally volatile times, but analysts still see Scotiabank earning $0.87 a share in its latest quarter, 21% ahead of where it was a year ago.

Wednesday
Cyberonics (Nasdaq: CYBX  ) and Greif (NYSE: GEF  ) are two of the companies announcing their quarterly financials on Wednesday. Cyberonics has an FDA-approved neuromodulation therapy system for treatment-resistant depression and refractory epilepsy. Greif makes industrial packaging products and manages some North American timber properties. The two companies have little in common beyond their projected growth. Wall Street expects Cyberonics and Greif to grow their quarterly profits by 50% and 53%, respectively.

Thursday
Retailers will be on parade come Thursday. Charming Shoppes (Nasdaq: CHRS  ) and Jos A. Bank (Nasdaq: JOSB  ) will provide a glimpse on the state of apparel, while America's Car-Mart (Nasdaq: CRMT  ) will drive up with a snapshot of the used car industry.

Friday
The trading week ends quietly, with Blyth's (NYSE: BTH  ) open house. Mr. Market expects the marketer of home fragrances and decor wares to earn $0.48 a share.

Don't bet on it. Analysts following the lightly covered company have been way off in recent quarters. Blyth blew past analyst's profit target in its previous quarter, but fell well short in the three preceding periods. In other words, these estimates truly can be called guesstimates.

Until next week, I remain,

Rick Munarriz