More than a third of the Dow Jones Industrial Average components
and nearly a quarter of the companies in the Standard & Poor's
500 Index will release quarterly results next week.
A Federal Reserve committee meets to discuss a key interest rate
while Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke is set to face a confirmation vote
in the Senate.
And Apple Inc. (AAPL) is scheduled to launch its latest product
Wednesday after months of speculation and rumors about a tablet
computer.
Boeing 4Q Results Seen Rising Sharply
Four major aerospace companies will report fourth-quarter
results next week as commercial air markets are beginning to turn
around. Boeing Co. (BA), which reports Wednesday, is likely to see
sharply improved results from a year earlier, when it took charges
related to its oft-delayed 787 and 747-8 programs. General Dynamics
Corp. (GD), reporting the same day, could have flat earnings on
weakness in its Gulfstream business-jet arm. Lockheed Martin Corp.
(LMT), which has been hurt by project cancellations, and Raytheon
Co. (RTN), which increasingly depends on its international
business, both report Thursday.
Refining Margins Likely Hurt Oil Firm Results
U.S. oil companies ConocoPhillips (COP) and Chevron Corp. (CVX)
are expected to post lower profits when they report Wednesday and
next Friday, respectively. ConocoPhillips has said it will post a
loss in its refining and marketing operations, reflecting low
worldwide market margins. Chevron, the second-largest U.S. oil
company by market value, is likely to report its largest increase
in annual production, though earnings were hurt by lower refining
and marketing profits.
Apple To Show Off New Product, Report Results
Apple Chief Executive Steve Jobs will take the stage Wednesday
in San Francisco to lift the wraps on what the company calls its
"latest creation," widely expected to be a touch-screen tablet
device. On Monday, the consumer-electronics maker will report
results for the December quarter, which is expected to feature
strong earnings growth driven by sales of both iPhone and Mac
products.
AT&T, Verizon Margins Focus Of Investors
Despite sharp wireless growth in the past few years, AT&T
Inc. (T) and Verizon Communications Inc. (VZ) face rising earnings
pressure as mobile and video competition boils over and their older
businesses decline. How well profit margins hold up will be the
focal point of investors next week when the nation's two largest
phone companies issue fourth-quarter results.
Verizon, which reports Tuesday, is expected to post improved
results from a year earlier as wireless growth got a big boost in
the holiday season from the Motorola Inc. (MOT) Droid and a smaller
lift from the Storm 2, produced by BlackBerry maker Research In
Motion Ltd. (RIMM). AT&T, which reports Thursday, is projected
to have higher earnings but slightly lower revenue.
Many Look For Caterpillar 2010 Guidance
Investors will be honing in on the 2010 earnings outlook from
Caterpillar Inc. (CAT) when the world's largest
construction-equipment maker releases fourth-quarter results
Wednesday. Wall Street analysts are looking for sales to increase
about 11% from 2009 with earnings jumping 35% as machinery demand
benefits from rebounding prices for mined commodities and increased
U.S. infrastructure.
Oracle To Disclose Plans For Sun After Merger
Oracle Corp. (ORCL) will discuss its plans for Sun Microsystems
Inc. (JAVA) on Wednesday. This week, the European Union's top
antitrust enforcer cleared Oracle's $7.4 billion takeover of Sun
after an investigation of nearly six months. Russian and Chinese
antitrust authorities are expected to approve the deal soon. The
U.S. Department of Justice has already cleared it. While the
companies don't have much overlap, there are some cases where they
sell competing products, such as software that makes different
systems work with one another.
Bernanke Confirmation Vote Could Be Close
More senators in recent days have come out and said they won't
vote for the reconfirmation of Federal Reserve Chairman Ben
Bernanke, whose first term ends on Jan. 31. And Majority Leader
Harry Reid (D., Nev.) said Friday he is undecided. Most observers,
though, don't see much likelihood in the nomination getting voted
down as legislators rail about the federal bailouts in the
financial industry. Meanwhile, the Federal Open Market Committee
meets Tuesday and Wednesday. It is expected to keep the federal
funds rate at near zero.
December Home Sales, 4Q GDP Figures Out
December sales of new homes likely climbed, while sales of
existing homes fell, according to economists' predictions of
reports due Wednesday and Monday, respectively. On Tuesday, the
S&P/Case-Shiller home price index will report on housing prices
in 20 major metropolitan areas.
Next Friday, the government will release its first estimate of
fourth-quarter gross domestic product. Economists are predicting
the report will show the U.S. economy grew 4.5%, compared with 2.2%
growth in the third quarter.
Also due are the nonprofit Conference Board's January consumer
confidence index on Tuesday and the final January reading of the
Reuters-University of Michigan consumer confidence index next
Friday. Reports on regional manufacturing activity will be issued
Monday by the Dallas Fed, Tuesday by the Richmond Fed, Wednesday by
the Chicago Fed and Thursday by the Kansas City Fed.
State Of Union To Address Deficit, Health Care
President Barack Obama will give his first State of the Union
address Wednesday, and a plan to establish a bipartisan commission
to tackle the soaring federal budget is likely to be a centerpiece
of the speech, according to those familiar with the talks. He also
will discuss his health-care overhaul plan, endangered by public
opposition and the Democrats' loss of a filibuster-proof majority
in the Senate.
Geithner, AIG Exec To Testify To House Panel
Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner and the former chief
financial officer of American International Group Inc.'s (AIG)
financial-services division are among those confirmed to appear
before House lawmakers next week. The House Committee on Oversight
and Government Reform has scheduled a hearing Wednesday on the
government's rescue of AIG in late 2008. Geithner was head of the
Federal Reserve Bank of New York at the time of the bailout. The
committee also invited former Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson and
Stephen Friedman, former chairman of the New York Fed, to
testify.
Sovereign Debt, Price Bubbles On Davos Agenda
The risks of a sovereign-debt crisis, asset-price bubble
collapse and hard-landing in the Chinese economy will be high on
the agenda of global leaders convening in Davos for the World
Economic Forum next week. More than 1,400 corporate and political
leaders will descend on the sleepy Swiss mountain town to debate
how to rethink, redesign and rebuild in the wake of the devastation
of the credit crisis and economic downturn. China's Vice Premier Li
Keqiang, who is expected to become premier in three years, will
represent his country at the event, which runs from Wednesday
through Sunday.
Sundance Slate Called Wider, More Artistic
The annual Sundance Film Festival, which runs through next week,
is focused on what the film industry is calling a wider, more
artistic set of films. In recent years, smaller studios and "indie"
labels have been dissolved or absorbed into their larger parent
companies, shrinking the market for fare that traditionally
premiered at festivals, then went on to theaters. Though the market
for theatrical distribution has become tougher, Sundance still
plays a pivotal role for many films, including "Precious," an
Academy Award contender that first played at Sundance last
year.
Conferences
Among the significant conferences next week are the Jefferies
Global Healthcare Services Conference from Monday through Wednesday
in New York, Dow Jones Private Equity Analyst Outlook Conference on
Tuesday and Wednesday in New York, and Bank of America Merrill
Lynch Gaming Conference on Thursday and next Friday in Las
Vegas.
-By Kathy Shwiff, Dow Jones Newswires; 212-416-2357;
kathy.shwiff@dowjones.com
(Robert Tita and other Dow Jones Newswires staff contributed to
this report.)
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