Earnings Previews: Micron Technology, Walgreens and More

Investing

Published: June 29, 2021 1:42 pm

With the end of the second calendar quarter of 2021 colliding with the Independence Day holiday, the focus on earnings reports won’t really begin until the week of July 12, when the country’s largest banks will be revealing their results for the quarter.

There are, however, some notable stocks that will report quarterly results over the next couple of days. Here’s a look at four reports due Wednesday and one more due Thursday morning.
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Bed, Bath & Beyond

Home merchandise retailer Bed, Bath & Beyond Inc. (NASDAQ: BBBY) reports first-quarter fiscal 2022 results before markets open Wednesday. The stock ended calendar 2020 with a gain of just 5%, after dipping by 80% in early April. So far in 2021, shares have gained about 71%, including a pop of nearly 200% in late January as the stock was swept up in the meme stock gold rush.

Of 20 analysts covering the stock, 12 rate the shares at Hold, with just two rating the stock as a Buy. Four analysts rate Bed, Bath & Beyond a Sell, and one has the stock as a Strong Sell. Shares recently traded around $30.60, above the average 12-month price target. At the high target of $38, upside potential on the stock is about 24%.

The consensus estimates call for earnings per share (EPS) of $0.08, sharply better than the loss per share of $1.96 posted a year ago. Sales are forecast to come in at $1.87 billion, a year-over-year increase of nearly 43%. For the full 2022 fiscal year, the company is expected to post EPS of $1.45 on sales of $8.16 billion. The annual profit forecast is higher than the year-ago actual profit, but the sales forecast is down by nearly 12%.

At the current price, Bed, Bath & Beyond stock trades at a multiple of 19.4 times expected 2022 EPS, 13.1 times estimated 2023 earnings and 9.4 times estimated 2024 earnings. The stock’s 52-week trading range is $7.39 to $53.90, and the average daily trading volume is about 7.2 million shares. The company pays an annual dividend of $0.68 (yield of 17.94% — that is not a typo).

Constellation Brands

Beer, wine and spirits maker Constellation Brands Inc. (NYSE: STZ) posted a share price gain of around 17.5% in 2020, and the stock has added another 6.4% so far in 2021. The share price has been volatile this year, having risen by about 12% in early May only to give most of that back by mid-June, when the stock traded up by less than 2% for the year. Constellation is also the largest shareholder in Canada-based marijuana grower Canopy Growth, and that investment has yet to be anything but a money pit. The company reports its results first thing Wednesday.

Analysts are upbeat on the stock, with 16 of 24 rating the shares a Buy or Strong Buy. There are no Sell ratings. At a recent trading price of around $231.00, upside potential to an average price target of $260.17 is about 12.6%. At the high target of $305, upside potential is about 32%.

Consensus estimates call for first-quarter fiscal 2022 EPS of $2.35, which would be up about 2.2% year over year. Sales for the quarter are forecast to come in at $2.02 billion, about a 2% gain. For the full fiscal year, sales are forecast to reach $8.54 billion, down less than 1% year over year, and EPS is expected to rise by about 1.3% to $10.10.

The shares trade at 22.8 times expected fiscal 2022 EPS, 19.6 times estimated 2023 earnings and 17.4 times expected 2024 earnings. The stock’s 52-week trading range is $160.634 to $244.75, and the average daily trading volume is around 1.1 million shares. Constellation pays an annual dividend of $3.04 (yield of 1.33%).

General Mills

Packaged food giant General Mills Inc. (NYSE: GIS) will report fourth-quarter fiscal 2021 results early Wednesday. Shares added 13.6% in 2020 and have risen by another 4.4% so far in 2021. As long as the company can continue to pay its rich dividend yield, investors will continue to pay attention

Of 20 analysts covering the stock, 14 rate the stock a Hold, while just two have Sell ratings. At around $60.30 a share, upside potential at the average price target of $62.62 is 3.8%. The high target of $71 indicates upside potential of nearly 18%.