The Q2 earnings season is gradually picking up steam with 92 companies on the S&P 500 index scheduled to report results this week. Although it's still too early to predict a clear pattern, the 36 companies that have reported results till Friday (Jul 15) more or less confirm the grim earnings projections for the quarter. Based on the hitherto declared results, Q2 is widely expected to be the fifth consecutive quarter to report an earnings decline for the benchmark index.

Plagued by a plethora of macroeconomic issues and continued volatility in the equity market, Q2 earnings estimates for the S&P 500 index have hovered in the negative territory, improving slightly from the last quarter. Per the latest Earnings Trend Report, overall Q2 earnings for the S&P 500 companies are expected to be down 5.9% on a 0.5% decline in revenues. The relative improvement in negative estimate revisions for the quarter is largely due to a turnaround in oil prices and fading effects of the dollar strength. The S&P 500 has also witnessed a dramatic reversal in its fortunes when it shrugged off about 5.3% drop in just two trading sessions (on the Brexit referendum) to record over 2% return for the quarter.

However, the overall Q2 earnings scenario remains clouded with uncertainty. What is more alarming is that the likely dismal earnings performance is not attributable to the inherent weakness of the Energy sector alone. Rather, downward estimate revisions are expected in almost all the sectors, barring a few. About 9 of the 16 sectors are expected to witness an earnings decline in the quarter under review, with Oil/Energy, Basic Materials, Transportation, Industrial Products, and Technology being the most notable.

Among the Container stocks slated to report this week, let’s take a sneak peek at three major packaging container providers to see how things are shaping up for the upcoming quarterly results.

Packaging Corporation of America (PKG Quick QuotePKG - Free Report) is scheduled to report second-quarter 2016 results after the closing bell on Jul 20. Our proven model does not conclusively show that Packaging Corporation is likely to beat earnings this quarter as it lacks the key components. A stock needs to have both a positive Earnings ESP and a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), #2 (Buy) or #3 (Hold) for an earnings beat. With a Zacks Rank #4 (Sell) and an Earnings ESP of -1.70%, Packaging Corporation fails on both counts.

Crown Holdings Inc. (CCK Quick QuoteCCK - Free Report) will report second-quarter 2016 results after the closing bell on Jul 20. The company has a Zacks Rank #4 with an Earnings ESP of -3.64%, making it difficult to conclusively predict an earnings beat this quarter.

Sonoco Products Co. (SON Quick QuoteSON - Free Report) is likely to report second-quarter 2016 results before the opening bell on Jul 21. With a Zacks Rank #3 and an Earnings ESP of 0.00%, it is difficult to conclusively predict an earnings beat for the to-be-reported quarter.

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