The earnings party of last week was full of fun and frolic. For the most part, if you followed my list of recommendations, you would have had your very own "Fiesta de Finance." (See Week in Preview – May 5)

The earnings season is still in full swing and should provide a great deal of action for the companies that will be reporting. But these companies will have to fight through a few new economic barriers. With oil pushing past historic levels and questions beginning to surface concerning the ability of the investor to continue to support a market that has so many headwinds, the mood is likely to shift moving forward. It is time for discipline, short and simple. Now, more than ever investors need a plan. I cover this strategy in my book, The Disciplined Investor.

In the last installment of The Week in Preview, I was looking for party opportunities in honor of Cinco de Mayo. This week, Misery is the theme. That is the only word that comes to mind with oil at a level that you would have never expected, a massive and unrelenting credit and housing crisis and a banking system that is defunct.

Monday - May 12

We start the week with a report from IndyMac Bancorp (NYSE: IMB). This bank is smack in the middle of the housing problem. It is primarily a lending company that facilitates loans for single-family homes. It's also involved in the origination and trading of mortgages. How does that sound to you as an investment? Shares have slid from $23 in October 2007 to an unbelievable level of $3.50 recently. Ouch... If you are a shareholder still holding on with hope and a prayer for something...anything, keep on dreaming. The good news is that the stock is sporting a yield of 29%. But, if you think that yield is going to be maintained, I have a bridge for sale. Estimates are for a loss of $1.92 per share for the quarter.


Sirius Satellite Radio (NASDAQ: SIRI) can finally show the world that satellite radio is the next big thing. With much of the confusion over the XM Satellite Radio (NASDAQ: XMSR) merger out of the way, we will now have the ability to see this company shine. Or not. The chart is in a clear downward trend, the fundamentals are appalling and the company is expected to post a loss of 7 cents for the quarter. But there is always next quarter I suppose.

Pacific Ethanol (NASDAQ: PEIX) has been feeling some pain of late. Between high corn prices, limited use of ethanol and unfavorable legislative actions, it has been an ugly ride for investors. Intuitively, you would think that alternative fuels, especially ethanol would have a great opportunity with oil over $120 per barrel. First Call shows analysts estimating a 9 cent per share loss for the period. It seems that revenue of $154 million is not enough to show profitability. Where does this stock go from here? Probably sideways for the time being.

Zoltek. Zoltek. Zoltek. (NASDAQ: ZOLT) This name is synonymous with aggravation and disappointment. In fact, in the investment dictionary, next to the word "horror-show" is this company's logo. It is not because of any particular problem other than the fact that shareholders are getting massacred. Interestingly, EPS growth has been reasonably good. Yet, slowing sales have caused shares to drop by 50% since January. Here is the kick: Institutional ownership is growing. In the last year the number of funds that own shares has doubled. What do they know that we don't? Revenue is expected to approach $50 million for the quarter with EPS estimated to be 22 cents.

Tuesday - May 13

The day starts with the release of monthly retail sales. Economists are expecting somewhere between 0-0.2% growth for April. This is a key number as all eyes are on the consumers.


It seems that eDiets (NASDAQ: DIET) has been taking the idea of dieting all the way to its share price. Shares are down an impressive 50 percent this year alone! You would have only thought that was possible with bariatric surgery. It is probable that the shedding of shareholder value will continue with this quarter's earnings release. The dieticians analysts are expecting additional earnings losses -- if that is even possible. First Call has put the quarterly loss estimate at 13 cents on $7.6 million of revenue.

Given Imaging (NASDAQ: GIVN) should be renamed: Taken Beating. The chart looks like one of those carnival slides that my kids love to ride. That ride is disgusting at best. What nerve they have making me sit on a filthy and torn potato sack. What do they take us for anyway? If you are the type that likes slides, go play with Given. Maybe you can even ask management to let you play with their wireless imaging systems for gastrointestinal tracks. HEY! Maybe we can introduce this technology to the eDiets team to help with their diet studies. For the patient investor, EPS growth looks to increase sometime in 2009. For now though, the quarterly loss is expected to be 4 cents on revenue of $27.27 million.

Rounding out the day's vomit-fest is Whole Foods (NASDAQ: WFMI). Here is another example of a company that should be renamed. You see, Half-Snacks shares have been rotting for the past two years, even in the face of several dividend increases and share buyback programs. The company's P/E is approaching 25 forward and earnings growth is expected to be 13%. This makes the PEG ratio a hot 1.92. As the robot in Lost in Space would say: "This does not compute." First Call estimates are for earnings of 30 cents per share on $1.892 billion of revenue. At least the food is good for you.

Wednesday - May 14

The Consumer Price Index has been showing massive gains when including all items. The effect of higher oil and food are trickling down to pockets and purses, causing the economy to slow. Economists believe that the Core-CPI will come in with a 0.2% monthly increase and CPI will be 0.3% higher.

Freddie Mac (NYSE: FRE) is planning on showing us how it fared in these tumultuous times. His darling bigger sister Fannie did a really nice job of evaporating a couple of billion dollars last week. You know what they say: "The family that lends together, offends together." Earnings losses are expected to approach 93 cents per share on $1.43 billion of revenue. Do you want to bet on that? Housing is the worst it has been in decades, the delinquency rate is abysmal, defaults are rising, bankruptcies are everywhere and Freddie is right in the middle of the action. Here is my vision: Freddie will miss earnings by a fair margin. Then, it will announce a $5 billion offering of preferred stock and tell us that this is the last time they will need capital and everything will be fine. Shareholders will rejoice and send the stock up, after first moving it down sharply. A day later, shares will be down again once investors wake from their concussions. Wait a minute -- didn't something like that happen with just last week with sissy-bear? (Click here for the real story on FNM and FRE.)

Want more? Can you feel the pain yet? It is like sliding down a razor blade naked into a pool of rubbing alcohol.
For the sick and twisted, take a crack at Salary.com (NASDAQ: SLRY) or maybe Rubio's (NASDAQ: RUBO). These are more examples of how not to invest. Then again, there is the annual need for tax write-offs I suppose.

Thursday - May 15

Initial Jobless claims for May are first up today. The major concern is that the continuing benefits number is increasing. This means that more people are losing jobs and not finding employment. So far, the good news is that unemployment levels are coming in below levels seen in previous recessions. Any spike will assuredly unnerve investors.

Isn't it time for downloadable movies yet? Blockbuster (NYSE:BBI) would have been the heir apparent for this, but NOOOOOOOOOOOO...Something is just not clicking here. Maybe it is the company policy of "no late fees" that really doesn't exist. Maybe it is the fact that Netflix (NASDAQ:NFLX) and Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) are eating their popcorn. Maybe it is the very bad idea they had of acquiring Circuit City (NYSE:CC). Whatever the excuse, the earnings growth looks pitiful and the debt load this company is carrying is very concerning. We shall see if it can meet expectations of 14 cents per share on a whopping $1.443 billion of revenue.

Want to make a grown man cry? Tell him he owns 20,000 shares of Mesa Air (NASDAQ: MESA). Mesa is right! The is the story of being at the wrong place at the wrong time. Rising fuel costs along with a recessionary environment have pushed this company's shares down 75% since January. Say this with me: There is still hope... there is always hope. So, hope that it meets estimates of a loss approaching 5 cents per share and show revenues of $325 million.

Last on the list, and definitely least, is Thornburg Mortgage (NASDAQ:TMA). A true thorn in the side of any investor, this is a simple disaster. Shares have slid along with the housing meltdown and a near-term recovery is questionable. Analysts are looking for a $2.36 per share loss for the quarter on $90 million of revenue. You can derive a sense of insane comfort with the fact that management only owns 1% of the outstanding shares. Translated: Management doesn't even think there is a future here.

Friday - May 16

The Michigan Sentiment numbers are released at 10:00 am. Economists at Briefing.com are suggesting another drop to 62 from 69. This number has been deteriorating for the past months. Remember, in December it stood at 75.

After the close, Abercrombie (NYSE: ANF) is reporting quarterly earnings. How cool is that? AFTER THE CLOTHES...It is remarkable that with all of the headwinds and problems we are seeing within the economy, this stock has actually held up rather well. Blame it on the weak dollar, blame it on the fashion, blame it on luck. No matter, this should be an interesting quarter as most specialty retailers are having a very tough time making ends meet. Analysts are looking for 65 cents per share, the same as a year ago. Revenue is expected to rise to $809 million for the period. AFTER THE CLOTHES..HAH!

Disclosure: Horowitz & Company clients may hold positions of securities mentioned as of the publish date. Andrew Horowitz is a money manager and author of bestselling The Disciplined Investor - Essential Strategies for Success. Data provided by Briefing.com and other sources believed to be reliable. Dates may change without notice.