Earnings Expectations For The Week Of August 11: Cisco, Deere, Wal-Mart And More

Reports from Cisco Systems CSCO and Deere DE will be among the highlights on the earnings front this week. Note though that analyst expectations are low for each of them.

Furthermore, earnings season for the major retailers has arrived. Taking their turns on the earnings stage this week are the granddad of retailers, Wal-Mart Stores WMT, as well as Macy's M, Nordstrom JWN and beleaguered J.C. Penney JCP. Analysts don't seem to be excited there either, though J.C. Penney is expected to have substantially narrowed its net loss.

Below is a closer look at what analysts anticipate from these reports.

Cisco

The second-quarter forecast for this communications and IT giant calls for earnings per share (EPS) to be up just a penny from the year-ago period to $0.53 in Wednesday afternoon's report. Revenues are expected to have fallen more than two percent to $12.14 billion.

Note that the consensus EPS estimate has not changed in the past 60 days, but Cisco topped consensus EPS expectations in the past four quarters. So far, the consensus forecast for the current quarter has both EPS and revenue flat, relative to a year ago.

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Deere

Analysts expect this leading maker of agricultural, construction and forestry heavy equipment to say that it had earnings of $2.21 per share in its fiscal third quarter. That would be down from $2.56 per share in the year-ago period. Revenues are forecast to have retreated from $9.32 billion a year ago to $8.80 billion for the three months that ended in July.

In the previous four quarters, analysts underestimated Deere's earnings by about seven percent to more than 18 percent. The consensus EPS estimate for the most recent quarter has dropped by three cents in the past 60 days. The company is scheduled to share its results Wednesday before the markets open.

Wal-Mart

The largest retailer in the world is expected to report earnings of $1.21 per share on Thursday morning. That would be down from a profit of $1.24 per share in the same period of last year. Note that analysts overestimated its per-share earnings in the previous quarter by more than four percent.

Wal-Mart also is expected to say revenues grew less than two percent from a year ago to $119.04 billion for the fiscal second quarter. So far, sales for the current period are predicted to be more than two percent higher to $118.80 billion, with EPS coming to $1.18, or up more than three percent year-on-year.

J.C. Penney

When it shares its results late Thursday, this Plano, Texas-based department store operator is expected to say its net loss for the second quarter narrowed from $2.20 a year ago to $0.94. While the consensus estimate has remained unchanged in the past 60 days, individual estimates range from $0.65 to $1.17.

In addition, the forecast calls for the retailer's quarterly revenues to total $2.78 billion. That would be more than four percent higher than a year ago. Analysts thus far are looking for a sequentially narrower net loss and growth on the top line for the current quarter.

Macy's

The forecast for this Cincinnati-based retailer calls for earnings of $0.86 per share and for revenue to come to $6.30 billion for the most recent quarter. In the year-ago fiscal second quarter, the department store operator posted a profit of $0.72 per share and revenue totaled at $6.07 billion.

The consensus EPS forecast has ticked up by a penny in the past 60 days, and Macy's exceeded analysts' expectations in the previous three quarters. Look for the company to share its latest results Wednesday before the opening bell.

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Nordstrom

In its report late Thursday, this Seattle-based fashion retailer is expected to report that its EPS increased from $0.93 per share in the year-ago quarter all the way to $0.94 for the three months that ended in July. Analysts seem certain, as 60 days ago that consensus EPS estimate was just the same.

Nordstrom's revenues for the second quarter are predicted to have grown more than six percent to $3.39 billion, relative to the same period of last year. So far, the forecasts have revenue up almost eight percent in the current quarter and about seven percent for the full year.

And Others

Others expected to report earnings gains this week include Agilent Technologies, Applied Materials, Canadian Solar, Estee Lauder, Cree, Kohl's, NetApp, Pinnacle Foods, Priceline and Sysco.

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