Tortilla chips, toppled ships, and TV scripts will color in the week that lies ahead.
Monday
A lot of us were mesmerized by the skyrocketing IPO of Chipotle Mexican Grill (NYSE:CMG) earlier this year. Come Monday, we'll get our first glimpse into the company's success as a stand-alone public company. The market expects the fast-growing, quick-service chain to earn $0.12 a share.
Chipotle got off to a good start and kept it going back in March when it announced earnings for the December quarter -- its last quarter before going public -- that clocked in 45% better than expected. Things will definitely get spicier than one of its signature burritos loaded with hot sauce if the company achieves a similar feat to kick off the new trading week.
Tuesday
The last time we heard from IMAX (NASDAQ:IMAX), the big screen cinematic savior was coming off a superb December quarter and announced that it was going to entertain unsolicited queries that may result in eventual buyout offers. The recent Rule Breakers recommendation may very well shed some light as to how life on the bidding block is going. It may also wish to address concerns raised in the current issue of Barron's that disputed the quality of the company's cash flow. Yes, it's quite possible that the least interesting thing that IMAX will be discussing on Tuesday will be its March quarter results and order backlog.
Wednesday
Another screen maker that also happens to be a Rule Breakers stock pick is Universal Display (NASDAQ:PANL). Granted, Universal Display won't be screening Poseidon on gargantuan film screens later this month. The company is a leader in the smaller, flexible, and transparent screens like the next generation panels using the company's proprietary phosphorescent OLED technology. Like its displays, Universal's got a bright future even though it's not expected to turn a profit until late in 2007 at the earliest.
Thursday
Now that Viacom (NYSE:VIA) has split into two distinct media companies, we can begin to track the faster growth of Viacom's cable properties. The company behind popular networks like MTV and Nickelodeon will hopefully show the market that it did the right thing in spinning off its CBS (NYSE:CBS) appendage by resuming the stand-alone growth that seemed to be weighed down when the company was a clunky conglomerate. If not, investors can take the remote control and switch the channel. There always seems to be something on somewhere else these days.
Friday
We close out the trading week with a flurry of international earnings reports. In the thinner world of celluloid, Motley Fool Stock Advisor selection Time Warner (NYSE:TWX) releases Poseidon, a loose adaptation of the original seafaring thriller, The Poseidon Adventure. Along with the third installment in the Mission Impossible series that will have already been a multiplex staple for a week by the time Poseidon debuts, it's safe to say that the summer blockbusters have arrived unseasonably early this year. Then again, many of the major studios have been pushing their big releases earlier into May in recent years. So enjoy the weekend and dig into that tub of popcorn.
Until next week, I remain,
Longtime Fool contributor Rick Munarriz recommends windshield wiper fluid when trying to look forward. He does not own shares in any of the companies in this story. The Fool has a disclosure policy. Rick is also part of the Rule Breakers newsletter research team, seeking out tomorrow's ultimate growth stocks a day early.
