From a consumer electronics retailer looking to get its stock back on track with strong projected growth in its latest quarter to a pair of real estate developers looking to make the most of the buoyant housing market, here are some of the things that will help shape the week that lies ahead on Wall Street.
Monday — Labor of Love
The market closes on Labor Day. Stock exchanges and banks aren’t open. Financial news may break during the day, but more often than not, any companies with something to say will wait until Tuesday.
Tuesday — Truth or Conn’s Sequences
It’s been a rough year for consumer electronics retailers, and Conn’s (CONN) investors know all about it. The same stock that soared 157 percent higher in 2013 has surrendered more than 40 percent of its value so far in 2014.
The turnaround that investors were betting on for the industry failed to materialize. It also may not seem like a good omen for Conn’s that larger peer Best Buy (BBY) posted disappointing financial results last week. However, Conn’s is growing, while Best Buy is retreating. Analysts see sales and earnings rocketing higher at a double-digit rate. It will be interesting to see if what’s eating Best Buy is also nibbling on Conn’s.
Wednesday — Homebuilders on Parade
The housing market boom seemed to be losing steam earlier this year, but then housing starts for July shot through the proverbial roof. There’s also an encouraging uptick in applications for building permits this summer, suggesting that the party — at least on the supply side of the equation — isn’t over just yet.
We’ll get a better read on the state of the industry when luxury homebuilder Toll Brothers (TOL) reports on Wednesday. Fellow developer Hovnanian Enterprises (HOV) checks in on Thursday morning.
Thursday — Don’t Be Chicken
One of this year’s hottest individual public offerings is El Pollo Loco (LOCO). The fast-casual chain specializing in citrus-marinated grilled chicken has seen its stock roughly double since going public at $15 this summer.
There have been several eatery IPOs that have gone stale in recent months, but El Pollo Loco has remained strong. That could all change on Thursday when it reports. It will be the market’s first taste of the chicken chain as a public company, and naturally expectations are high when a stock doubles out of the gate.
Friday — At the Movies
There is never a quiet Friday at the neighborhood multiplex, because that’s when new movies typically make their debut. September is historically sleepy, though. The big-budget blockbusters have already come out earlier in the summer, and we’re still not facing the glut of horror movies in October or bigger holiday hopefuls later in the year.
The biggest movie opening this weekend will be “The Identical,” a period piece that starts during the Great Depression when parents of identical twin boys decide to give one up to a reverend’s family to give him a better life. Music winds up connecting their destinies. It stars Ray Liotta and Ashley Judd.
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