Second Quarter Results Gain Momentum

US stocks have travelled a rocky road over the past three months, as the disappointing job market continues to put a dampener on any positive market related news. Investors anticipate that the coming week will provide more insight into the state of the economy as reflected in corporate results, with up to half of the thirty Dow components and more than twenty percent of the S&P 500 member companies reporting second quarter results. Analysts note that stock market players should bear in mind that historically the second quarter of the year tends to be the weakest. They are, however pointing toward a 6.5 percent increase in second quarter earnings for the S&P 500 in comparison to last year. Corporate results being released this week represent all stock market sectors. In additional to earnings, investors will no doubt be following the Debt Ceiling saga and its effect on the US credit rating in the days ahead.

On Monday, second quarter results are expected from Halliburton (NYSE:HAL), Wynn Resorts (NASDAQ:WYNN), HASBRO (NASDAQ:HAS), and IBM (NYSE:IBM). Tuesday’s reporting wil make public the result of soft-drink kingpin Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO), Johnson & Johnson (NYSE: JNJ), Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS), and Bank of America (NYSE:BAC) – the latter expected to post a loss mainly attributable to the settlement of a lawsuit relating to mortgage-backed securities. Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL; NYSE:AAPL)will report earnings after the closing bell and economic data for the day will include building permits from the Commerce Department, along with June housing starts.

Before opening of Wall Street trade on Wednesday morning, second quarter corporate results are expected from BlackRock (NYSE:BLK), United Technologies (NYSE:UTX), and Altria (NYSE:MO). June home sales data from the National Association of Realtors will be made known during the day, and after the closing bell American Express (NYSE:AXP), and Intel (NASDAQ:INTC; NYSE:INTC; EURONEXT:INCO; SEHK:4335) will release much anticipated results. On Thursday, second quarter results are expected from AT&T (NYSE:T), Travelers (NYSE:TRV), Advanced Micro Devices (NYSE:AMD), and Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT). Other market related activities on Thursday include the release of the Labor Department’s weekly jobless claims data and July manufacturing survey from the Philadelphia Federal Reserve. The week draws to a close with reports from Verizon (NYSE:VZ), General Electric (NYSE:GE), Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT), McDonalds (NYSE:MCD), Honeywell (NYSE:HON), Xerox (NYSE:XRX), and Schlumberger (NYSE:SLB).