Toys for all ages will be on display in the week of earnings that lies ahead. Let's take a closer look.
Monday
It would be great if you could just boil down Hasbro's (NYSE:HAS) fourth-quarter numbers to the name of one of its many board games. If it nails it? Connect Four. If it blows it? Sorry! As one of the country's two leading toy makers, Motley Fool Stock Advisor stock pick Hasbro goes through the industry's typical seasonality. It's quiet through the first half of the year before toy orders pick up during the third and fourth quarters in anticipation of the gift-giving holidays. That's why the week will kick things off with an important financial report from Hasbro. How strong was the season? How are preorders going for April's launch of Darth Tater? Hasbro isn't playing games here -- though its shareholders are welcome to take a nap come Monday until the company's next relevant earnings report nine months later.
Tuesday
With the market's phasers set to stun, Taser International (NASDAQ:TASR) reports its fourth-quarter results. As a stock recommendation in our Rule Breakers newsletter service, the market's taken to firing at the stun gun maker lately after last month's streak of bad news that included investigations over the product's safety as well as a rash of insider sales. The stock was one of last year's biggest winners; it more than quadrupled in 2004. Yes, this one's rich in irony. A company that aims to subdue has been anything but subdued in its wild price swings. Then again, those extreme gyrations often provide some interesting entry and exit points for investors -- and, unfortunately, speculators too.
Wednesday
Old school video game junkies are welcome to wax nostalgic when they think of Atari (NASDAQ:ATAR). After all, it was the video game console to own a couple of decades ago when graphics and gameplay were simplistic. But just like Sega, Atari has made its mark lately as a software publisher. It's not just anthologies of its flagship games as the company has put out games behind popular Dragon Ball Z, Godzilla, Driv3r, and Dungeons and Dragons properties. While no one will confuse this low-priced stock with industry leader Electronic Arts (NASDAQ:ERTS), the company is expected to post a profit on Wednesday for its fiscal 2005 third quarter. Will it be putting the joy back in joystick? We'll soon find out.
Thursday
Everyone's favorite dorm room success story turns a new page when Dell Computer (NASDAQ:DELL) announces its quarterly figures. Yes, the modest company that got its start with Michael Dell assembling computer systems out of his college dorm back in Texas has grown into the country's dominant player with its enviable low-cost structure and a consumer direct model that flat out works. Dell has been growing faster than the competition for years and by the time the beans have all been counted you're probably looking at a bellwether that rang up roughly $50 billion in sales over the past year.
Friday
The week closes out quietly with a slew of mostly international companies chiming in. However, if your heart skips a beat it's always good to have QMed (NASDAQ:QMED) around. While analysts expect the maker of cardiovascular diagnostic equipment to close out the year with a small loss, they do expect the company to be consistently profitable through 2005. The stock's a wild one. It shot up 19% on Thursday alone. How's that for yet another dose of fiscal irony? QMed is a heart specialist that will quicken your pulse from time to time.
Until next week I remain,
Rick Munarriz
Longtime Fool contributor Rick Munarriz does remember playing on an Atari 2600. He's glad to see how far we've come on that front. He does not own shares in any of the companies mentioned in this story. The Fool has a disclosure policy. He is also part of the Rule Breakers newsletter research team, seeking out tomorrow's ultimate growth stocks a day early.
