Barnes & Noble, H-P, Black Friday Highlight Short Week -- Week Ahead

   By Michael Calia 
 

It will be a short but eventful and crucial week for markets as retailers' biggest time of the year kicks into a higher gear as Black Friday awaits.

Several big names are due to report their quarterly earnings this week, as well.

Finally, key economic data--third-quarter gross domestic product and housing stats--are on tap, too.

Markets will be closed Thanksgiving Day, and will close early Friday.

 
   Black...Thursday? 
 

Several big retailers aren't waiting for the day after Thanksgiving to kick off this year's holiday shopping season. Instead, more are opening their doors on Thanksgiving, in a bid to stretch the shorter-than-usual sales window between then and Christmas. Chains such as Best Buy Co. Inc. (BBY), Macy's Inc. (M) and Toys 'R' Us Inc. will be open on the holiday.

Wal-Mart Stores Inc. (WMT), which will start to offer its Black Friday promotions on 6 p.m. Thanksgiving night, has already started matching its competitors' holiday deals

 
   Barnes and Noble, H-P Lead Earnings Pack 
 

Barnes & Noble Inc. (BKS), which has launched an aggressive marketing campaign for the holiday season, is among several big names scheduled to report results Tuesday. Analysts expect the beleaguered bookseller to post a loss of four cents a share for its fiscal second quarter.

Hewlett-Packard Co. (HPQ) is expected to report Tuesday, as well. Chief Executive Meg Whitman is trying to turn around the company as it struggles with declining demand for PCs. Analysts are predicting earnings of $1 a share for H-P's fiscal fourth quarter.

Hormel Foods Corp. (HRL), whose margins have been squeezed recently by higher commodity costs, is expected to post earnings for its fiscal fourth quarter Tuesday morning. Wall Street expects earnings of 54 cents a share.

Other key names expected to report earnings Tuesday: Guess Inc. (GES), Tiffany & Co. (TIF), Cracker Barrel Old Country Store Inc. (CBRL) and asset manager Eaton Vance Corp. (EV).

 
   Housing Data, U.S. GDP, Consumer Sentiment 
 

Data for pending home sales and in October are scheduled for Monday. Observers will be looking to see if pending home sales, considered a more timely measure of the market because the figure measures when contracts are signed, can bounce back from an unexpected drop in September. Consensus estimates have the sales up 1.1%,

The second take on third-quarter U.S. gross domestic product is expected Tuesday. Initially, the government said the economy grew at a 2.8% annual rate in the quarter, due to a larger-than-expected gain in certain inventories in September.

The consumer confidence reading for November is also expected on Tuesday, giving markets a read on the U.S. consumer's mindset heading into the biggest shopping season of the year.

Write to Michael Calia at [e-mail]

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