More of today’s most important earnings reports previewed:
PepsiCo Inc. (NYSE:PEP) will announce its earnings today after what has been a tough couple of years for the company. Though its huge portfolio of products is doing well it still suffers from second place syndrome because of the eponymous cola. Recent sales data indicated that Pepsi had become the number 3 selling beverage in the United States after Coca Cola and Diet Coke, a black eye for the company. Analysts are expectin the firm to announce earnings per share of 66 cents on revenue of $12.4 billion. Last years numbers were higher at 71 cents per share.
Raytheon Company (NYSE:RTN), like Lockheed Martin also reporting today, is another firm operating mainly in the Defense industry. The firm is expected to announce an earnings per share of around $1.16 on revenues of around $5.77 billion. The company did much better last year securing earnings of $1.38 per share on revenues of $6.06 billion. The firm is having a tough time as of late though modernization in the armed forces continues. Revenues are down almost everywhere for service delivery companies.
Starbucks Corporation (NASDAQ:SBUCKS), the coffee shop chain, will also announce earnings later today amid hopes that the company will move beyond its coffee shops into other areas in order to expand its growth. Revenues have been flat in the coffee shop sector signalling that the market may be saturated. Starbucks have come back with a series of alternative measures for growth. Earnings are projected to be 39 cents per share up from last year’s 34 cents per share. The company continues to diversify and will continue to grow as long as demand for its consumer goods stays strong. The firm’s strongest asset is its instantly recognizable brand name which it will be spreading to emerging economies with greater and greater force in coming years.
Zynga Inc. (NYSE:ZNGA) will quite possibly provide the most interesting earnings report of the day. The social gaming company operates on Facebook’s platform and collects revenue from advertisements and premium in game purchases. Having gone public so recently investors are not necessarily expecting gold today but they need something to prove web platforms are profitable. Analysts are seeing this with Zynga, which should post earnings of 5 cents per share on revenue of $316.8 million. The company is indelibly connected with Facebook, making up over 10% of Facebook’s revenue last year, and so today’s earnings will reflect on that company’s IPO later this year.
