There's never a dull week on Wall Street. Let's go over some of the news that will shape the week to come.
Monday
The new trading week kicks off with Diamond Foods (DMND +0.00%) reporting. BB&T Capital Markets upgraded shares of the snack-foods distributor on Thursday. It's a good sign when an analyst is willing to make a call so close to an earnings report.
Diamond Foods has come a long way since the accounting scandal a couple of years ago that forced it to shake up its executive ranks and fumble its Pringles acquisition. The market has pushed the shares 77% higher this year alone.
Tuesday
There's no "I" in "team," but there are two in Team's (TISI +7.11%) ticker symbol. The provider of industrial services reports on Tuesday afternoon. Analysts see Team earning $0.36 a share for the fiscal first quarter, flat with last year's profit. They do see revenue inching 9% higher. Adjusted earnings slipped on growing revenue for all of fiscal 2013, so flat bottom-line growth to kick off fiscal 2014 would be considered an improvement.
Wednesday
Monsanto (MON +0.00%) was once known for its seed traits, pesticides, and other agrochemicals that help farmers achieve more bountiful harvests. These days it's known largely for growing activism as fans of organic foodstuffs protest Monsanto's products and practices. There's still a business here, and investors will get a chance to sample Monsanto's latest quarterly crop of financials on Wednesday.
Wall Street's braced for a deficit, but that's normal. This is the seasonally sleepy quarter for agribusiness companies. Monsanto also sported a loss a year earlier during the same quarter, more than making that bank during the other three quarters. However, even in this seasonally soft period, Monsanto will still ring up more than $2 billion in revenue.
Activists may or may not have a point, but for now Monsanto just keeps growing.
Thursday
Investors will be tuning on Thursday to see if things will be as bad as Xyratex (NASDAQ: XRTX) expects.
The data-storage specialist issued uninspiring guidance this summer, targeting $195 million to $225 million in revenue. Xyratex's revenue topped $275 million a year earlier. Its bottom-line guidance -- calling for adjusted earnings to clock in between a loss of $0.04 a share and a profit of $0.20 a share -- will also fall short of the prior year's results.
Friday
The market is typically quiet on Friday, but the same can't be said for your local multiplex.
New movies making their debuts on Friday include Gravity and Runner Runner. It's October, so one can expect that what will open later in the month will consist largely of horror films, so enjoy the other genres while you can.
