As earnings season begins to draw to a close, a few big-name firms have yet to release their earnings from the first quarter of the year:
Tuesday
- McKesson Corp (MCK ): After Tuesday’s closing bell, analysts will be expecting EPS of $2.75, a nice bump from $2.55 the previous year.
Wednesday
Thursday
- Applied Materials (AMAT ): AMAT will report after Thursday’s close, when it is expected to show EPS of $0.28 (the company reported the same last year).
- Kohl’s Corporation (KSS ): Before the opening bell, analysts are expecting to see EPS of $0.57 from KSS, slightly down from $0.60 for the same period one year ago.
- Nordstrom, Inc. (JWN ): JWN will report after the close, when analysts are anticipating EPS of $0.71 versus the $0.72 from last year.
The Bottom Line: Investors Unfazed by Earnings
This quarter’s earnings have been relatively overlooked as far as broad markets are concerned. While there have certainly been up and down days due to the results of some of Wall Street’s biggest names, investors have their eyes fixated elsewhere.
That elsewhere includes a confusing bag of economic data, with GDP coming in well below expectations, and the most recent unemployment numbers showing one of the best job markets in seven years. And let’s not forget about the Fed. At this point, the financial world sounds like a broken record with such an intense focus on the Fed, but the fact is investors are still hanging on Yellen and company and their eventual rate raise.
On the one hand, it’s a nice change of pace to see investors taking earnings season in relative stride, as the past few seasons have seen big swings dependent on reports and outlook. On the other hand, it brings us back to the frustrating environment of waiting on the Fed while financial pundits argue back and forth about whether or not we’re headed for an even stronger bull run or correction.
While the market may be having trouble establishing a solid direction for 2015, there are still plenty of stocks and securities offering strong yields. An investor’s best bet is to stick to his or her guns and sort through all of the noise on Wall Street.
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