Cramer’s week ahead: ‘Be on your toes’ this earnings period

CNBC’s Jim Cramer on Friday urged investors to make thoughtful decisions about their portfolios when the new earnings season begins next week.

“This is an important week. The first of three. Stay on your toes. Heed the call. Don’t take any action until you’re sure. It’s very hard to be sure about anything right now— just reported,” he said, repeating some of his Five rules for earnings season,

The biggest companies in tech, retail and consumer goods will report their quarterly financial results in a highly anticipated earnings season.

Cramer previewed a slate of quarterly reports. All estimates for earnings, revenue and economic data are courtesy of FactSet.

Tuesday: General Electric, 3M, Union Pacific, Microsoft

general Electric

  • Q4 2022 Earnings to be Released at 6:30 am ET; Conference Call at 8 AM ET
  • Estimated EPS: $1.15
  • Estimated revenue: $21.25 billion

The company “must show us why we want to be in its energy division. It’s the next spinoff after health care, but we really want a flourishing aerospace business,” he said.

3m

  • Q4 2022 Earnings to be Released at 6:30 am ET; Conference Call at 9 PM ET
  • Estimated EPS: $2.37
  • Estimated Revenue: $8.04 billion

Cramer said that 3M’s roughly 5% dividend yield isn’t high enough given the risk of litigation from lawsuits against the company.

union pacific

  • Q4 2022 Earnings Released at 7:45 AM ET; Conference Call at 8:45 AM ET
  • Estimated EPS: $2.78
  • Estimated Revenue: $6.31 billion

Cramer said the company’s earnings call should provide insight into the state of US commerce.

Microsoft

  • Q2 2023 Earnings to be Released at 4:05 PM ET; Conference Call at 5:30 PM ET
  • Estimated EPS: $2.30
  • Estimated Revenue: $53.13 billion

investors “will learn if they Microsoft lays off Announcements made this week are based on desperation or discretion,” he said.

Wednesday: Boeing, IBM, ServiceNow

boeing

  • Q4 2022 Earnings Release at 7:30 AM ET; Conference Call at 10:30am ET
  • Estimated EPS: 22 cents
  • Estimated Revenue: $20.24 billion

Cramer said he expects a solid quarter from the company.

IBM

  • Q4 2022 Earnings to be Released at 4:08 PM ET; Conference Call at 5 PM ET
  • Estimated EPS: $3.59
  • Estimated revenue: $16.13 billion

He said he likes the stock going into the quarter because it’s a defensive play with a strong yield of 4.7%.

service now

  • Q4 2022 Earnings to be Released at 4:10 PM ET; Conference Call at 5 PM ET
  • Estimated EPS: $2.02
  • Estimated Revenue: $1.94 billion

He said the earnings call will reveal whether beaten-down enterprise software stocks will find relief this year.

Thursday: Dow, Southwest Airlines

doe

  • Q4 2022 Earnings to be Released at 6 AM ET; Conference Call at 8 AM ET
  • Estimated EPS: 58 cents
  • Estimated revenue: $12.05 billion

Cramer said the company’s stock “looks like a buy.”

Southwest Airlines

  • Q4 2022 Earnings to be Released at 6:30 am ET; Conference Call at 12:30 PM ET
  • Estimated loss: 7 cents per share
  • Estimated Revenue: $6.22 billion

The company is no longer one of the best-run airlines, he said.

friday: American Express

  • Q4 2022 Earnings to be Released at 7 AM ET; Conference Call at 8:30am ET
  • Estimated EPS: $2.23
  • Estimated revenue: $14.23 billion

“American Express is a terrible ‘Life is too short’ Play,” he said.

Disclaimer: Cramer’s charitable trust owns shares of Microsoft.

Jim Cramer’s Guide to Investing

Click here to download Jim Cramer’s Guide to Investing All at no cost to help you build long term wealth and invest smarter.