Earnings

The week ahead In a week light on earnings, Wall Street will focus on Friday's report on inflation at the producer level. Monday Consumer credit (July). Earnings: Hi-Tech Pharmacal Tuesday Wholesale inventories, pending home sales (July)...

There seems to be a short circuit between Emerson Electric Co.'s financial performance and its stock price. The diversified St. Louis-based conglomerate has topped Wall Street's quarterly earnings forecasts like clockwork for more than a year. Like...

Conventional wisdom had long held that some industries would collapse if oil topped $100 a barrel. As oil neared $150, sending costs higher for everything from jet fuel to plastic jars, the question was how many companies would succumb. The surprising...

Online 'estimator' calculates retirement benefits Do you know how much your Social Security benefit will be? For those nearing retirement, and especially for those 10 years or more away, the answer has always been, at best, a rough estimate. A new...

Martek Biosciences Corp. said yesterday that third quarter net income increased 47 percent to $9.3 million, or 28 cents per diluted share compared with $6.1 million, or 19 cents per diluted share for the corresponding period a year ago. Revenues were $88....

Commonwealth Edison parent Exelon Corp., citing its solid balance sheet, said directors approved the repurchase of up to $1.5 billion of the Chicago-based utility holding company's common stock. Exelon said it expects the buyback to be completed...

Navistar International Corp., helped by its fast-growing defense segment, reported fiscal third-quarter earnings late Wednesday that far surpassed analyst expectations. For the quarter ended July 31, the Warrenville-based maker of trucks and engines had...

Navistar International Corp., helped by its fast-growing defense segment, reported fiscal third-quarter earnings that dramatically topped analyst expectations. For the quarter ended July 31, the Warrenville maker of trucks and engines had net income of...

Sales growth of nearly 30 percent failed to boost fourth-quarter profits at United Natural Foods, the Killingly-based natural and organic food wholesaler that is Whole Foods Market's main supplier. Net income for the quarter that ended Aug. 2 was $12.8...

Monday •Labor Day: Markets closed Tuesday •August Institute for Supply Management index •July construction spending •Earnings: Donaldson Co. Wednesday •August auto sales •July factory orders •Federal...

The Week Ahead The state of the U.S. job market will be in focus during the holiday-shortened week, while auto sales are expected to rise from July's record lows. Retailers will also continue to report their financial results. Employment data A...

Value investing, the strategy of picking stocks perceived to be trading for less than their intrinsic worth, isn't having an easy year. The usually steady financial stocks that dominate many value portfolios are in disarray, periods of uncertainty...