Retail Sector Earnings in Focus

The second quarter reporting season has ended for 9 of the 16 Zacks sectors, but a number of major retailers are still coming out with results. It will be a few more weeks before we can ‘officially’ close the books on the second quarter.

This week brings results from 169 companies, including 22 S&P 500 companies. By the end of the week, we will have results from 469 of the S&P 500 companies or roughly 96% of the total, getting us closer to the finish line.

Companies in the Retail sector are a big part of the still-to-come reports. In fact, more than 55% of the expected Retail sector earnings in the second quarter will be coming from the roughly 38% of retailers still to report results in the coming days. And a big portion of that will come out this week, as bellwether operators like Wal-Mart (WMT), Target (TGT) and Home Depot (HD) report results.

Total earnings for the 457 companies in the S&P 500 that have already reported (as of Friday, August 10th) are up 4.4% from the same period last year, with Finance as the primary growth driver. This compares to 8.6% growth for these same companies in the first quarter, when banks didn’t have such easy comparisons.

Approximately 65% of all companies are coming out with positive earnings surprises, with a median surprise of 2.7%. In the first quarter, 65.4% of these same companies beat earnings expectations, with a median surprise of 3.5%. Excluding Finance, total earnings growth falls into negative territory, down 1.5% from the same period last year, compared to positive 5.8% growth for the ex-Finance group in the first quarter.

Revenue growth has been notably weak this quarter, with only 37.9% of the companies coming out with positive revenue surprises. Even a number of these companies with positive surprises for the second quarter have guided towards softer revenue numbers in the coming quarters. This does not bode well for growth in the coming quarters.

The economic calendar is quite busy as well, with a number of key reports on inflation, housing, and manufacturing sector.

Monday - 8/13

• No major economic releases this morning.
• The key earnings report today is from Groupon (GRPN), which comes out after the close. Our ‘ESP’ indicator is pointing towards a negative surprise, which will likely add to the stock’s troubles. With the stock down more than 60% year to date, the glow has come off the Groupon story.

Tuesday - 8/14

• We will get the July Retail Sales and PPI data in the morning. Retail Sales are expected to be up 0.2% overall and 0.3% excluding Autos, which would be major improvements over the negative prints in June.
• Home Depot (HD), Estee Lauder (EL), Saks (SKS) and TJX Companies (TJX) are the key reports in the morning. As a key player in the housing sector, management comments on the Home Depot call would be as meaningful as the company’s results themselves.

Wednesday - 8/15

• We have a very busy economic and earnings schedule today. On the economic front, we will get the July CPI and Industrial Production reports and the August Empire State and Homebuilder Indexes.
• The CPI data may not be much newsy, though the Industrial Production and Empire State readings will be checked for trends in the manufacturing sector. The manufacturing sector has been losing steam lately, with the ISM index below the 50 level in the last two months.
• On the earnings front, we will get results from Target (TGT) and Deere (DE) in the morning, while Cisco (CSCO) reports after the close. It has been a while since Cisco was a critical leader in the technology space, but comments from the company’s CEO are still considered valuable for trends in tech capital spending.

Thursday - 8/16

• In addition to weekly Jobless Claims, we will get the July Housing Starts and August Philly Fed manufacturing survey.
• It will be interesting to see whether the weekly Jobless Claims numbers this morning confirm the positive momentum from the week before.
• Wal-Mart (WMT), Gap (GPS), Dollar Tree (DLTR) and Sears Holdings (SHLD) are the major reports in the morning.

Friday - 8/17

• We will get the advanced August University of Michigan Sentiment Survey and the July Leading Indicators from the Conference Board.
• J.M. Smucker (SJM) and Hibbett Sports (HIBB) are the key reports in the morning.

Here is a list of 169 companies reporting this week, including 45 from the S&P 500:

Company	Ticker	1Q-12E	1Q-11A	Last EPS Surprise %	Report Day	Time
ADV PHOTONIX -A	API	-0.02	0	33.33	Monday	AMC
AEGEAN MARINE	ANW	0.15	0.07	18.18	Monday	AMC
AMER MIDSTREAM	AMID	-0.08	-0.74	500	Monday	AMC
ARRAY BIOPHARMA	ARRY	-0.13	-0.17	31.25	Monday	AMC
ASIA ENTMNT&RES	AERL	0.38	0.44	0	Monday	BTO
ATHERSYS INC	ATHX	-0.16	-0.14	-21.43	Monday	AMC
AURICO GOLD INC	AUQ	0.1	0.2	8.33	Monday	BTO
BRF-BRASIL FOOD	BRFS	0.1	0.36	-62.96	Monday	N/A
CLAUDE RSRCS	CGR	0.02	0.03	-100	Monday	BTO
CLEARONE COMM	CLRO	0.09	0.17	-53.85	Monday	BTO
CTI INDUSTRIES	CTIB	0.09	0	71.43	Monday	BTO
FORTEGA FIN CP	FRF	0.19	0.12	-10.53	Monday	AMC
GROUPON INC	GRPN	-0.02	-0.35	50	Monday	AMC
GSE SYSTEMS INC	GVP	0.01	0	50	Monday	AMC
IAMGOLD CORP	IAG	0.19	0.19	-10.71	Monday	AMC
INTEROIL CORP	IOC	0.06	0.4	280	Monday	AMC
LONE PINE RSRCS	LPR	-0.01	0.11	-177.78	Monday	AMC
PDI INC	PDII	-0.07	-0.06	-200	Monday	AMC
PHOENIX NEW MED	FENG	0.1	-0.9	20	Monday	AMC
PLANAR SYSTEMS	PLNR	-0.2	-0.05	45.71	Monday	AMC
POWER SOL INTL	PSIX	0.18	0.03	0	Monday	AMC
REAL GOODS SOLR	RSOL	-0.04	0.02	30	Monday	AMC
SKY-MOBI LTD	MOBI	0.08	0.04	-87.5	Monday	BTO
SUMMER INFANT	SUMR	0.09	0.12	-41.67	Monday	AMC
SYSCO CORP	SYY	0.54	0.57	16.67	Monday	BTO
TRANSCEPT PHARM	TSPT	-0.3	-0.17	15.91	Monday	AMC
TUCOWS INC	TCX	0.02	0.01	50	Monday	AMC
UTSTARCOM HLDGS	UTSI	0.02	0.07	-160	Monday	BTO
WUXI PHARMATECH	WX	0.28	0.25	11.54	Monday	AMC
AETERNA ZENTARS	AEZS	-0.07	-0.12	-22.22	Tuesday	AMC
AIRMEDIA GP-ADR	AMCN	-0.05	-0.11	-66.67	Tuesday	AMC
ALPHA&OMEGA SEM	AOSL	0.15	0.37	200	Tuesday	AMC
ASURE SOFTWARE	ASUR	0.01	0.01	33.33	Tuesday	BTO
AUTONAVI HL-ADR	AMAP	0.22	0.19	20	Tuesday	BTO
AXOGEN CORP	AXGN	-0.19	0.06	0	Tuesday	AMC
BALLARD PWR SYS	BLDP	-0.06	-0.1	-42.86	Tuesday	BTO
BIOANALYTIC SYS	BASI	-0.14	-0.65	-471.43	Tuesday	BTO
BOB EVANS FARMS	BOBE	0.6	0.59	9.59	Tuesday	AMC
BRIDGELINE SFWR	BLIN	-0.04	-0.02	200	Tuesday	AMC
CACHE INC	CACH	0.2	0.22	0	Tuesday	BTO
CELLCOM ISRAEL	CEL	0.24	0.72	67.86	Tuesday	BTO
CELSION CORP	CLSN	-0.19	-0.39	9.52	Tuesday	BTO
CHINA TRANSINFO	CTFO	0.07	0.11	42.86	Tuesday	BTO
CIA SIDERUR-ADR	SID	0.04	0.48	-84	Tuesday	AMC
CINEDIGM DIGITL	CIDM	-0.01	-0.16	7.69	Tuesday	AMC
COUNTRY STY-ADR	CCSC	0.06	0.03	-100	Tuesday	AMC
CROWN CRAFTS	CRWS	0.07	0.06	0	Tuesday	AMC
CRUMBS BAKE SHP	CRMB	-0.08	-0.05	10	Tuesday	AMC
DEJOUR ENERGY	DEJ	0	0	0	Tuesday	N/A
DERMA SCIENCES	DSCI	-0.23	-0.07	-50	Tuesday	BTO
DICKS SPRTG GDS	DKS	0.64	0.52	18.42	Tuesday	BTO
ELBIT SYSTEMS	ESLT	0.89	1.17	0	Tuesday	BTO
ENGLOBAL CORP	ENG	0.02	0.01	-100	Tuesday	BTO
ESTEE LAUDER	EL	0.16	0.13	15.15	Tuesday	BTO
FIRST MAJESTIC	AG	0.3	0.3	-13.33	Tuesday	BTO
FLOWERS FOODS	FLO	0.22	0.23	0	Tuesday	BTO
GAS NATURAL INC	EGAS	0.07	0.04	0	Tuesday	AMC
GREAT BASIN GLD	GBG	0.01	0	-400	Tuesday	AMC
HOME DEPOT	HD	0.97	0.86	0	Tuesday	BTO
HUDBAY MINERALS	HBM	0.08	0.23	-15.38	Tuesday	AMC
INTERLEUKIN GEN	ILIU	-0.03	-0.04	0	Tuesday	AMC
JACK HENRY ASSC	JKHY	0.46	0.42	0	Tuesday	AMC
JAGUAR MINING	JAG	-0.04	0.11	-233.33	Tuesday	AMC
JDS UNIPHASE CP	JDSU	0.09	0.16	-28.57	Tuesday	AMC
KIOR INC-A	KIOR	-0.23	-0.14	0	Tuesday	BTO
KIT DIGITAL INC	KITD	-0.37	-0.16	0	Tuesday	BTO
KONGZHONG-ADR	KONG	0.16	0.01	50	Tuesday	AMC
LIFEWAY FOODS	LWAY	0.06	0.02	16.67	Tuesday	AMC
MECOX LANE LTD	MCOX	-0.06	-0.06	46.15	Tuesday	AMC
MFC INDUSTRIAL	MIL	0.15	0.19	91.67	Tuesday	BTO
MYRIAD GENETICS	MYGN	0.34	0.3	6.25	Tuesday	AMC
NEONODE INC	NEON	-0.03	-0.1	-66.67	Tuesday	BTO
NETLIST INC	NLST	-0.07	-0.06	33.33	Tuesday	AMC
PAC ETHANOL INC	PEIX	-0.04	-0.09	-233.33	Tuesday	AMC
PAN AMER SILVER	PAAS	0.35	0.71	28.89	Tuesday	AMC
PERNIX THERAPTC	PTX	0.01	0.07	-55.56	Tuesday	BTO
PHOTRONICS INC	PLAB	0.15	0.23	16.67	Tuesday	AMC
PHYSICIANS FORM	FACE	0.04	-0.02	220	Tuesday	N/A
PLUG POWER INC	PLUG	-0.16	-0.52	-72.22	Tuesday	BTO
RESPONSE GENETC	RGDX	-0.12	0	-40	Tuesday	BTO
SAKS INC	SKS	-0.09	-0.05	0	Tuesday	BTO
SHORETEL INC	SHOR	-0.09	-0.03	0	Tuesday	AMC
SORL AUTO PARTS	SORL	0.18	0.26	-20	Tuesday	BTO
TECHPRECISION	TPCS	-0.06	0.01	-275	Tuesday	AMC
TITAN PHARMA	TTNP	-0.05	-0.12	40	Tuesday	N/A
TJX COS INC NEW	TJX	0.55	0.45	1.85	Tuesday	BTO
TOWERS WATSON	TW	1.2	0.95	3.85	Tuesday	BTO
TRI-TECH HOLDNG	TRIT	0.2	0.21	6.25	Tuesday	N/A
ULTRAPETROL LTD	ULTR	-0.2	-0.2	-135	Tuesday	AMC
VALSPAR CORP	VAL	0.96	0.8	3.7	Tuesday	BTO
VELTI PLC	VELT	-0.11	-0.33	-75	Tuesday	BTO
VIRTUALSCOPICS	VSCP	0	0.01	100	Tuesday	BTO
WIDEPOINT CORP	WYY	0	0	-100	Tuesday	AMC
3SBIO INC-ADS	SSRX	0.24	0.21	15	Wednesday	BTO
ABERCROMBIE	ANF	0.17	0.35	50	Wednesday	BTO
ADECOAGRO SA	AGRO	0.12	0.02	-100	Wednesday	N/A
AFC ENTERPRISES	AFCE	0.26	0.23	12.9	Wednesday	AMC
AGILENT TECH	A	0.83	0.77	6.85	Wednesday	AMC
APPLD MATLS INC	AMAT	0.22	0.35	12.5	Wednesday	AMC
AVIAT NETWORKS	AVNW	0	0.03	150	Wednesday	AMC
BIOLINE RX LTD	BLRX	-0.25	-0.4	N/A	Wednesday	BTO
CACI INTL A	CACI	1.51	1.28	2.11	Wednesday	AMC
CANADIAN SOLAR	CSIQ	-0.3	0.24	5.77	Wednesday	BTO
CHINA CERAMICS	CCCL	0.61	0.61	-6.67	Wednesday	BTO
CHINA DISTANCE	DL	0.04	0.05	33.33	Wednesday	AMC
CISCO SYSTEMS	CSCO	0.4	0.35	2.44	Wednesday	AMC
CITI TRENDS INC	CTRN	-0.44	-0.62	46.81	Wednesday	BTO
DEERE & CO	DE	2.32	1.69	2.76	Wednesday	BTO
GILAT SATELLITE	GILT	0.05	0.02	-175	Wednesday	N/A
HOLLYSYS AUTOMT	HOLI	0.22	0.12	23.53	Wednesday	BTO
HOT TOPIC INC	HOTT	-0.02	-0.08	12.5	Wednesday	AMC
LIMITED BRANDS	LTD	0.48	0.48	2.5	Wednesday	AMC
MIPS TECH INC	MIPS	-0.08	0.01	0	Wednesday	AMC
NETAPP INC	NTAP	0.25	0.44	10.2	Wednesday	AMC
NETEASE INC	NTES	1.08	0.91	11.76	Wednesday	AMC
PETSMART INC	PETM	0.65	0.54	16.44	Wednesday	AMC
SHARPS COMPLIAN	SMED	-0.04	-0.03	100	Wednesday	BTO
SINA CORP	SINA	-0.09	0.15	0	Wednesday	AMC
SINOVAC BIOTECH	SVA	-0.1	0.02	23.08	Wednesday	BTO
STAPLES INC	SPLS	0.22	0.22	0	Wednesday	BTO
SYNERON MED LTD	ELOS	0.06	0	83.33	Wednesday	BTO
TARGET CORP	TGT	1.01	1.03	2.97	Wednesday	BTO
UNWIRED PLANET	UPIP	-0.07	-0.1	30	Wednesday	AMC
VALUEVISION CLA	VVTV	-0.12	-0.09	10.53	Wednesday	BTO
VANCEINFO TECH	VIT	0.15	0.16	-6.67	Wednesday	BTO
VIMPELCOM LTD	VIP	0.29	0.16	-13.04	Wednesday	N/A
XUEDA EDUC-ADR	XUE	0.15	0.21	125	Wednesday	AMC
YUCHENG TECHNOL	YTEC	0.07	0.08	13.33	Wednesday	BTO
1800FLOWERS.COM	FLWS	0.01	0	100	Thursday	BTO
21VIANET GP-ADR	VNET	0.09	0.06	11.11	Thursday	AMC
AEROFLEX HOLDNG	ARX	0.19	0.35	-53.33	Thursday	BTO
AEROPOSTALE INC	ARO	0	-0.02	0	Thursday	AMC
AMERICAS CAR-MT	CRMT	0.87	0.78	7.78	Thursday	AMC
AVAGO TECHNOLOG	AVGO	0.61	0.65	10.71	Thursday	AMC
BON-TON STORES	BONT	-1.78	-1.78	-2.23	Thursday	BTO
BROCADE COMM SY	BRCD	0.08	0.05	50	Thursday	AMC
BUCKLE INC	BKE	0.49	0.5	3.95	Thursday	BTO
CATO CORP A	CATO	0.55	0.61	2.83	Thursday	BTO
CHILDRENS PLACE	PLCE	-0.66	-0.38	3.77	Thursday	BTO
COSI INC	COSI	0.02	-0.01	33.33	Thursday	AMC
DOLLAR TREE INC	DLTR	0.47	0.38	2.04	Thursday	BTO
E-COMMRC CH-ADR	DANG	-0.22	-0.06	13.04	Thursday	BTO
E-HOUSE CHINA	EJ	-0.1	-0.05	-52.63	Thursday	BTO
G&K SVCS A	GKSR	0.55	0.49	-8	Thursday	BTO
GAMESTOP CORP	GME	0.14	0.22	0	Thursday	BTO
GAP INC	GPS	0.48	0.35	2.17	Thursday	AMC
HARMONY GOLD	HMY	0.27	-0.01	8.33	Thursday	N/A
IFM INVEST-ADS	CTC	-0.5	-0.84	41.67	Thursday	BTO
JIAYUAN.COM INT	DATE	0.03	0	200	Thursday	AMC
LSI INDUSTRIES	LYTS	0.1	0.06	0	Thursday	BTO
MARVELL TECH GP	MRVL	0.22	0.33	12.5	Thursday	AMC
PERRIGO COMPANY	PRGO	1.26	1.02	16.53	Thursday	BTO
PERRY ELLIS INT	PERY	0.03	0.11	9.23	Thursday	BTO
ROSS STORES	ROST	0.81	0.64	0	Thursday	BTO
SCANSOURCE INC	SCSC	0.62	0.71	-1.85	Thursday	AMC
SEARS HLDG CP	SHLD	-0.84	-1.13	47.46	Thursday	BTO
SOUFUN HLDG-ADR	SFUN	0.41	0.37	N/A	Thursday	BTO
STAGE STORES	SSI	0.34	0.29	350	Thursday	BTO
STEIN MART INC	SMRT	0.02	0.03	-10	Thursday	BTO
TAOMEE HOLDINGS	TAOM	0.01	0.13	0	Thursday	BTO
WAL-MART STORES	WMT	1.17	1.09	4.81	Thursday	BTO
ANN INC	ANN	0.51	0.47	13.73	Friday	BTO
CASUAL MALE RET	CMRG	0.07	0.14	0	Friday	BTO
CHIPMOS TEC LTD	IMOS	0.15	-0.01	-800	Friday	BTO
FOOT LOCKER INC	FL	0.32	0.24	12.16	Friday	BTO
HIBBET SPORTS	HIBB	0.27	0.21	6.52	Friday	BTO
ISOFTSTONE LTD	ISS	0.09	0.11	0	Friday	BTO
KIRKLANDS INC	KIRK	-0.08	-0.02	0	Friday	BTO
SMUCKER JM	SJM	0.99	1.12	11.11	Friday	BTO