Monday
The new week will begin with a few retailers issuing initial reports on their Black Friday results. You've got to love Inside Value pick Wal-Mart (NYSE:WMT) for its weekly sales reports, but usually, a robust weekend may inspire a promotional press release from other stores as well.
On the earnings front, it will be mostly quiet, as investors slowly return from the Thanksgiving holiday weekend. One of the few companies posting results will be Donaldson (NYSE:DCI). The engine products and filtration equipment specialist is expected to grow its latest quarterly earnings to $0.43 a share, after a $0.37-per-share showing a year earlier.
Tuesday
More retailers will go on parade on Tuesday, as companies like Chico's FAS (NYSE:CHS) and Dress Barn (NASDAQ:DBRN) clue us in regarding the hot items in women's apparel during the critical holiday shopping season.
Wednesday
Hoping to post results that will want to make its shareholders hit the pause button and hear it again, TiVo (NASDAQ:TIVO) takes the stage on Wednesday. The Stock Advisor pick is still deep in the red, even though the losses should narrow during the period. It's a pity, because the company always seems to be on the cutting edge of digital video recording technology. Unfortunately, history has often proven that being right early isn't always enough.
Thursday
I may have never had a bad meal at Cheesecake Factory (NASDAQ:CAKE), but investors have been feeling a bit of indigestion lately. The popular casual dining chain with gargantuan portions (and often, even bigger wait times for a table) was one of the companies caught with its hands in the stock-option-backdating cookie jar.
Making matters worse, Wall Street expects the chain to post earnings of only $0.24 a share for the period. That's down from the $0.27 per share it produced a year ago.
Friday
You can wake up to the Warner Music Group (NYSE:WMG) report on Friday, even if it doesn't have much of a snappy beat. Analysts expect the music label to merely break even in the final quarter of its 2006 fiscal year. The company has been a leader in mining digital distribution for its roster of artists, including Madonna and Green Day, so let's see whether it can harmonize with investors.
Until next week, I remain,
Rick Munarriz
Longtime Fool contributor Rick Munarriz recommends windshield wiper fluid when trying to look forward. He is also part of the Rule Breakers newsletter research team, seeking out tomorrow's ultimate growth stocks a day early. He does own shares in TiVo and Cheesecake Factory. The Fool has a disclosure policy.
