Food, fun and films will rule the week that lies ahead. Let's take a closer look.
Monday
What's eating SYSCO (NYSE:SYY)? The country's leading food service distributor will hopefully have a hearty earnings report to kick off the new trading week. Last time out the company reported a 4% gain in revenues, yet the growth was due entirely to acquisitions and food-price inflation.
You would think that a company so in touch with eating habits would know how to grow organically, right? All kidding aside, though, SYSCO is huge. If you don't know the company, it's probably because you haven't seen the company's delivery trucks parked behind some of your favorite eateries dropping off the edibles early in the morning. The company had nearly $30 billion in sales last year. Yes, that's a whole lot of grub.
Tuesday
Is EA still in the game? Back in March, Electronic Arts (NASDAQ:ERTS) spooked the market when it warned that 2005 wasn't going to be so hot. After investors were guided to expect earnings to come in between $1.62 to $1.64 a share -- roughly two dimes less than the video game giant had originally projected -- the stock was sent tumbling down.
So, in a sense, there may be some relief going into Tuesday's earnings report. There is a fair degree of pessimism already priced into the stock. Then again, Wall Street is going to want a little more clarity here. Have things improved since March? Have things gotten worse? Expect a little volatility here one way or another.
Wednesday
It's not true. Time Warner (NYSE:TWX) is not running out of Time. It's not even running low on Warner. Though the media giant behind CNN, America Online, and a plethora of film, cable, and publishing properties seems to be waiting for some form of fiscal salvation to rescue it from the teens -- where its stock has been stranded for the last three years -- that's not really the case. The previous quarter was respectable, and the company also has new initiatives to make a bigger splash online while fortifying its existing properties.
Naturally, a company as gargantuan as Time Warner will take several steps in the right direction before the market starts to notice. Still, the product of the marriage between new and old media when AOL and Time Warner hooked up a few years ago is slowly but surely starting to bear financial fruit. You just may have to wait a few more seasons to reap the harvest.
Thursday
To infinity and beyond? That was Buzz Lightyear's catchphrase in the popular Toy Story movie. For its creator, Pixar (NASDAQ:PIXR), though, it's often been a question worth asking regarding the company's potential. It now has just one movie left to deliver under its contract with Disney (NYSE:DIS), where the companies split the profits down the middle after Disney takes its cut as film distributor. With Pixar ready to take in 100% of the profits on its future projects, the bottom line can look awfully sweet if the company is able to achieve the same kind of success that it has had in the past.
That doesn't mean that Disney will be left out in the cold. Pixar's last split was with its shares -- not Mickey Mouse. There is still a chance that Disney and Pixar will be able to keep their distributor relationship going, though it obviously won't be as lucrative for Disney as it used to be. Pixar -- and Electronic Arts -- have been winning stock recommendations in the Stock Advisor newsletter service. On Thursday, it will be Pixar's turn to take to the earnings podium.
Friday
For Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE:BRKa) (NYSE:BRKb), a quarterly report seems almost like an insult. Warren Buffett is arguably the greatest investor of our time, and it's hard to judge his long-term investing philosophy by peeking into a compact three-month window of performance. Still, the company behind names you know like GEICO and Dairy Queen (and many more that you don't -- a testament to Buffett's buying style) will wrap up the week with its own earnings results. Tune in. Fifteen minutes or fewer may not save you any money on your car insurance, but it may make you a smarter investor.
Want to learn more about the companies waiting to report earnings this week? Check out:
Until next week, I remain,
Longtime Fool contributor Rick Munarriz still isn't sure what a gecko has to do with car insurance. He does own shares in Disney and Pixar. 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.
