Procter & Gamble Q2 Earnings Preview: Can Strong Report Bring Consumer Staples Stocks Back To Life?

Consumer goods company Procter & Gamble PG could put a spotlight on the sector and the Dow Jones Industrial Average when the company reports second-quarter financial results before market open Wednesday.

Earnings Estimates: Analysts expect the company to report second-quarter revenue of $21.54 billion compared to last year's second quarter total of $21.44 billion, according to data from Benzinga Pro.

The company has missed analyst estimates for revenue in two straight quarters, while beating estimates in seven of the last 10 quarters overall.

Analysts expect the company to report second-quarter earnings per share of $1.86, up slightly from last year's second quarter total of $1.84. The company has beaten analyst estimates in seven straight quarters and eight of the last 10 quarters overall.

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Key Items to Watch: Procter & Gamble's earnings report could signal strength or weakness for the consumer staples sector.

"Overall the Staples have been one of the weakest performing sectors since December," Jay Woods, Freedom Capital Markets chief global strategist said in a weekly newsletter. "Much of that has to do with the rally in the dollar."

Woods said a strong dollar could be a headwind for consumer staples companies with high international exposure.

The market strategist said that Procter & Gamble shares are not often too volatile on the day of their financial results, with an average move of +/- 2.7% on earnings days.

Woods said Procter & Gamble shares have fallen from their recent peak of $180 and went from being "an overbought condition to an oversold condition in six weeks."

One of the key items investors and analysts will be watching in the company's financial results will be the impact of China and the Middle East, which were keys concerns for several analysts after first-quarter results.

Here is a look at recent analyst ratings on Procter & Gamble and their price targets:

• Barclays: Maintained Equal-Weight rating, lowered price target from $163 to $155
• Stifel: Maintained Hold rating, lowered price target from $167 to $161
• UBS: Maintained Buy rating, lowered price target from $196 to $189
• JPMorgan: Maintained Overweight rating, lowered price target from $186 to $181
• Wells Fargo: Maintained Overweight rating, lowered price target from $190 to $176

Procter & Gamble's earnings results could put several ETFs in focus as the third largest component of the SPDR Select Sector Fund – Consumer Staples XLP ETF and as for the Dow Jones Industrial Average tracking ETFs like the SPDR Dow Jones Industrial Average ETF DIA.

PG Price Action: Procter & Gamble stock trades at $161.51 Tuesday versus a 52-week trading range of $146.28 to $180.48. Procter & Gamble stock is up 9% over the last year.

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