The three major U.S. equity indexes closed higher on Friday. The Dow Jones industrials added 1.27%, while the S&P 500 rose by 1.73% and the Nasdaq climbed 2.09%. All 11 sectors ended the day higher, led by consumer cyclicals (2.3%) and technology (2.0%). For the week, the Dow was up 2.9%, but it remains down 7.1% for the year to date. The S&P 500 was up 3.3% last week (down 10.2% year to date), and the Nasdaq was up 3.1% for the week (down 16.6% year to date).
In addition to the weekly report on claims for jobless benefits, this week brings fresh housing and retail sales data. All three indexes traded lower in Monday’s premarket session.
After markets closed Friday, Sundial Growers, now named SNDL, reported better-than-expected revenue but badly missed the consensus estimate for the quarterly loss per share. The stock traded down about 1.7% in Monday’s premarket.
Before U.S. markets opened on Monday, Chinese electric vehicle maker Li Auto missed both revenue and loss-per-share estimates. The stock was down about 5.6% in premarket trading.
Bitfarms missed both earnings and revenue estimates. The stock traded down about 5.5% in Monday’s premarket.
We have already previewed earnings due out before U.S. markets open on Tuesday from Genius Sports, Home Depot, Sea Limited and Walmart.
Here is a look at three companies scheduled to report quarterly results first thing Wednesday morning.
Lowe’s
Over the past 12 months, the share price of Lowe’s Companies Inc. (NYSE: LOW) has increased by about 7.5%. After posting a 52-week high in mid-December, the shares slid by a third to a yearly low in late June. Since then, the shares have added almost 20%.
Lowe’s larger rival, Home Depot reports quarterly results Tuesday morning, and that report will influence investor sentiment on Lowe’s. Some consumers are ditching home improvement projects and spending on travel, according to many analysts, while others are worried about inflation and job security.
Of 30 analysts covering the company, 21 have a Buy or Strong Buy rating. Another nine rate the shares at Hold. At a recent price of around $206.50 a share, the upside potential to a median price target of $230.50 is 11.6%. At the high price target of $300.00, the upside potential is 45.3%.
Fiscal second-quarter revenue is forecast at $28.17 billion, which would be up 19.1% sequentially and by 2.2% year over year. Adjusted earnings per share (EPS) are expected to come in at $4.59, up 30.8% sequentially and 8.0% higher year over year. For the full 2023 fiscal year ending in January, analysts expect EPS of $13.41, up 11.4%, on sales of $97.52 billion, up 1.3%.
Lowe’s stock trades at 15.4 times expected 2023 EPS, 14.3 times estimated 2023 earnings of $14.47 and 12.6 times estimated 2024 earnings of $16.39 per share. The stock’s 52-week trading range is $170.12 to $263.31, and the company pays an annual dividend of $3.20 (yield of 2.03%). Total shareholder return for the past year is 9.3%.
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