On Friday, CNBC’s Jim Cramer urged investors to make careful and thoughtful decisions about their portfolios when the new earnings season kicks off next week.
“This is a pivotal week. The first of three. Be on your guard. Listen to the calls. Do nothing unless you are certain. It is very difficult to be certain of anything that has just been reported” , he said, reiterating some of his five rules for earnings season.
The highly anticipated earnings season will see the biggest companies in technology, retail and consumer goods release their quarterly financial results.
Cramer previewed the list of quarterly reports. All earnings, revenue and economic data estimates are provided courtesy of FactSet.
Tuesday: General Electric, 3M, Union Pacific, Microsoft
General Electric
- Fourth Quarter 2022 Earnings Release at 6:30 a.m. ET; conference call at 8 a.m. ET
- Projected EPS: $1.15
- Projected revenue: $21.25 billion
The company should “show us why we would want to be in its energy division. It’s the next spinoff after healthcare, but all we really want is the aerospace boom,” a- he declared.
3M
- Fourth Quarter 2022 Earnings Release at 6:30 a.m. ET; conference call at 9 a.m. ET
- Projected EPS: $2.37
- Projected revenue: $8.04 billion
Cramer said 3M’s roughly 5% dividend yield was not good enough, given the risk of litigation from lawsuits against the company.
Union Pacific
- Fourth Quarter 2022 Earnings Release at 7:45 a.m. ET; conference call at 8:45 a.m. ET
- Projected EPS: $2.78
- Projected revenue: $6.31 billion
The company’s earnings call should provide some insight into the state of U.S. trade, Cramer said.
Microsoft
- Q2 2023 results release at 4:05 p.m. ET; conference call at 5:30 p.m. ET
- Projected EPS: $2.30
- Projected revenue: $53.13 billion
Investors “will know whether these layoffs announced by Microsoft this week are driven by disappointment or caution,” he said.
Wednesday: Boeing, IBM, ServiceNow
Boeing
- Fourth Quarter 2022 Earnings Release at 7:30 a.m. ET; conference call at 10:30 a.m. ET
- Projected EPS: 22 cents
- Projected revenue: $20.24 billion
Cramer said he expects a strong quarter from the company.
IBM
- Fourth Quarter 2022 Earnings Release at 4:08 p.m. ET; conference call at 5 p.m. ET
- Projected EPS: $3.59
- Projected revenue: $16.13 billion
He said he liked the stock early in the quarter because it’s a defensive play with a high yield of 4.7%.
ServiceNow
- Fourth Quarter 2022 Earnings Release at 4:10 p.m. ET; conference call at 5 p.m. ET
- Projected EPS: $2.02
- Projected revenue: $1.94 billion
The earnings call will show whether battered enterprise software stocks will find respite this year, he said.
Thursday: Dow, Southwest Airlines
Dow
- Fourth Quarter 2022 Earnings Release at 6:00 a.m. ET; conference call at 8 a.m. ET
- Projected EPS: 58 cents
- Projected revenue: $12.05 billion
Cramer said the company’s stock “seemed like a buy.”
South West Airlines
- Fourth Quarter 2022 Earnings Release at 6:30 a.m. ET; conference call at 12:30 p.m. ET
- Expected loss: 7 cents per share
- Projected revenue: $6.22 billion
The company is no longer one of the best-run airlines, he said.
Friday: American Express
- Fourth Quarter 2022 Earnings Release at 7:00 a.m. ET; conference call at 8:30 a.m. ET
- Projected EPS: $2.23
- Projected revenue: $14.23 billion
“American Express is a great ‘life is too short’ play,” he said.
Disclaimer: Cramer’s Charitable Trust owns stock in Microsoft.
