With the presidential election and November’s Federal Reserve policy decision out of the way, the stock market can begin to look toward the holiday shopping season. Home Depot (HD) anchors the reporting among retailers in the coming week. Cisco Systems (CSCO), Vertex Pharmaceuticals (VRTX) and Costco Wholesale (COST) are all in a buy zone, with Cisco results due Wednesday.

Stocks To Watch: More Ideas For A New Era

The stock market rally is at record highs after a massive week of news, earnings and events. The result has left many leaders even more extended. But Meta Platforms (META), Deckers (DECK), Broadcom (AVGO), Costco Wholesale and Vertex Pharmaceuticals are setting up nicely. Meta ended a four-week slide and now has a new flat base. Deckers has been flirting with a buy point after five months of consolidation, though a key rival reports soon. Broadcom is up 66% this year. Costco has a 45% gain and Vertex has rallied 24%. Broadcom was near a traditional buy point, but already flashing a slightly early entry. Vertex and Costco had broken out, but remained in buy zones.

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Economic Calendar: A Slowed Pace Of Rate Cuts?

The coming week could shift expectations for another rate reduction in December, after Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell said that policymakers were discussing a slower pace of cuts. The consumer price index for October, out Wednesday, is expected to show a second straight 0.3% rise in core prices, excluding food and energy, according to FactSet. The headline inflation rate is expected to rise to 2.6% from 2.4% in October. Thursday’s producer price index will also set expectations for the Fed’s primary inflation gauge released late in the month. Retail sales for October, out Friday, are seen rising a moderate 0.35% on the month, with a 0.4% gain excluding autos and gas.

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Retail Radar: Leveraging ‘Digital Prowess’

Home Depot received an upgrade to outperform on Friday ahead of its Q3 report on Tuesday. Research firm Telsey raised the stock’s price target to 455, up from 360 and 12% above where shares traded on Friday. Telsey expects additional market share gains, given the outfit’s “digital prowess” and strong exposure to the professional market. Analyst consensus is for EPS to retreat 4%, with sales rising 4%. That would mark Home Depot’s seventh consecutive earnings decline. Same-store sales are forecast to fall 3.3%. The last time the Dow retailer recorded a same-store sales increase was Q3 2022. Home Depot stock is up 7% from a September breakout, and rebounding from support.

Stock Market Earnings: Six Of Mag 7 Top EPS Views

More than 400 S&P 500 companies reported recent quarterly results through the end of the week. Earnings outstripped views by 7.9% through Tuesday, according to Yardeni Research. Nvidia (NVDA) is the only Magnificent 7 company yet to report. All of the others have topped earnings expectations, and only Tesla (TSLA) missed the mark in top-line growth.

Entertainment: A Rebounding Disney Reports

Disney (DIS) announces Q4 results early Thursday. FactSet expects the Dow Jones entertainment giant to report a 34% earnings increase on revenue growth of 5.8% — in line with recent results. Total streaming subscribers are seen rising to 232 million, from 224.7 million last year. Disney+ subscribers are expected to hit 155.7 million from 150.2 million in Q4 2023. Analysts forecast parks and experiences revenue will tick up 1%. Piper Sandler has a neutral rating on DIS stock with a 95 price target. Disney shares are up 10% this year after rebounding from an August low, trading above 98 on Friday.

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Networking: Cisco Hovers In A Buy Zone

Cisco Systems reports fiscal Q1 2025 earnings late Wednesday. Analysts project adjusted EPS will slip 21%. Revenue is expected to fall 6%. Analysts are expecting a rebound in the computer networking business in the back half of fiscal 2025. Cisco has already forecast AI cloud computing orders of $1 billion in 2025. Investors will focus on whether AI orders and backlog continue to grow. Cisco stock is in a buy zone above a 57.05 buy point.

Energy Stocks: Two Views Of The Oilfields

Occidental Petroleum (OXY) announces third-quarter earnings after Tuesday’s stock market close. Analyst consensus puts Q3 EPS down 37% vs. a year earlier, with sales declining less than 1%. Investors have been paying close attention to how the Warren Buffett-backed Permian Basin oil producer plans to reduce debt and clean up its balance sheet. Top drilling rig maker Helmerich & Payne (HP) reports fiscal fourth-quarter results late Wednesday. Analysts project EPS growing 13% with sales increasing more than 5%. HP stock is flat, Occidental is down 16% in, 2024.

Stock Market Earnings Briefs

Monday

Live Nation Entertainment (LYV) reports Q3 results late Monday. FactSet expects earnings to fall 9.6% to $1.61 per share on a 4.6% decline in revenue to $7.78 billion. LYV stock has rallied more than 33% this year and is approaching its record high of 127.75 from November 2021.

Tuesday

Shopify (SHOP) reports Q3 numbers before the stock market open Tuesday. Analysts predict adjusted EPS of 27 cents, up 14%, with revenue growing 23% to $2.12 billion. Gross merchandise volume is expected to grow 19% to $67.8 billion. The company’s operating margins are one area of investor focus. Shopify sets up e-commerce websites for small businesses, and partners with others to handle digital payments and shipping.

Spotify Technology (SPOT) will report its Q3 results late Tuesday. Analysts expect the streaming music leader to earn $1.81 a share, up 417% year over year, on sales of $4.32 billion, up 21%. Spotify is seen adding 5 million premium subscribers in Q3 for a total of 251 million worldwide. The stock sits on a nine-week advance.

Wednesday

CyberArk (CYBR) reports Q3 earnings on Wednesday. Analysts model adjusted EPS of 46 cents, up 9% for the cybersecurity play, with revenue growing 22% to $234.1 million. CyberArk sells privileged access management, also known as PAM, products. Also, it has built a broad identity security platform.

Beazer Homes (BZH) announces fiscal fourth-quarter results after the stock market closes Wednesday. Analysts expect Q3 EPS of $1.35, down 25% vs. a year ago, with sales increasing 20% to $775 million. BZH stock is less than 3% below a buy point in a tight, double-bottom base.

Thursday

Applied Materials (AMAT) will post its fiscal fourth-quarter results late Thursday. Wall Street expects the chip-gear maker to earn $2.19 a share, up 3% year over year, on sales of $6.96 billion, up 3%.

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