5 Reasons Not to Worry This Week

It's not a perfect world out there for investors, but things may be starting to get better.

Sure, G20 meetings kicked off in Mexico over the weekend and the United States' fiscal cliff is a major concern. Uncertainties heading into Tuesday's presidential election aren't helping.

I recently went over some of the companies that are expected to post lower quarterly profits when they report this week. Thankfully, they're the exceptions and not the rule.

 Let's go over some publicly traded companies that are expected to stand tall this week by posting year-over-year improvement on the bottom line.

Source: Thomson Reuters.

Clearing the table
Let's start at the top with LeapFrog.

The maker of popular electronic education toys for children had one of last year's hottest playthings during the telltale holiday shopping season. Despite its $99 price tag, LeapFrog's LeapPad was the most popular layaway item at the country's largest retailer. Things should be even better this time around, since the original LeapPad is now marked down to $79 to make room for the improved $99 LeapPad2.

Sure, even Toys R Us will be selling its own kid-friendly tablet this year. The smart money still has to be on LeapFrog.

LeapFrog earned 46% more than Wall Street was expecting three months ago. It was a 33% beat three months before that. In fact, LeapFrog has landed ahead of the pros by double-digit percentage margins every single quarter over the past year. That naturally bodes well for LeapFrog as it reports after today's close.

Frontier provides phone, Internet, and television services in rural markets. These may be small markets, but it's for that very reason that the big boys often stay away. Frontier's big draw is its fat dividend. It isn't easy to find a juicy 8.9% yield these days.

Frontier isn't perfect. Analysts see a 17% drop in revenue. However, margins must be holding up nicely given the bottom-line burst that those same pros are forecasting.

J.C. Penney hasn't been an easy retailer to turn around, though the market's still willing to give Ron Johnson a few more quarters to see if his makeover will get it right. For now, the process merely involves narrowing deficits. It's a start, but hopefully it's not the finish line.

SodaStream is the Israeli company behind the popular namesake beverage system that turns flat water into sparkling soda. Just like LeapFrog, SodaStream is a company that has blown past Wall Street's estimates by double-digit percentage margins every single quarter over the past year. In fact, SodaStream has landed ahead of analyst profit targets every single time since going public two years ago.

Another chance to prove that it's more than just a "pop" star awaits on Wednesday.

Finally, we have NVIDIA reporting. The graphics chip leader is trying to make the leap from PCs to the more portable gadgetry that consumers and businesses are actually buying these days. For now, it's succeeding. Wall Street's betting on just a small improvement in profitability, but revenues should come through with a 12% uptick.

Cross those fingers, but know the fundamentals
Investors in these five stocks have a right to be excited. They are all improving their financial situations. They are worthy of the gains that the market rally has bestowed upon them over the past year.

I wouldn't be uncomfortable owning any of these companies. They're doing the right thing, regardless of Mr. Market's mood swings.

The expectations may be high, but these five stocks wouldn't have it any other way.