The Fool Looks Ahead

Monday
The market is closed in observation of Labor Day, so don't try to set the New York Stock Exchange bell as your wake-up alarm. In most cases, you won't be needing it, anyway.

Tuesday
Pep Boys (NYS: PBY) , VeriFone (NYS: PAY) , and Altera (NAS: ALTR) are some of the first companies reporting during the abridged trading week. Analysts see year-over-year improvement on the bottom line for Pep Boys and VeriFone, but the same can't be said for Altera.

Wednesday
SeaChange (NAS: SEAC) reports on Wednesday. The company has nothing to do with the nasty flooding that Hurricane Irene left in its wake. Despite its name, SeaChange also isn't a maritime shipper, a cruise line, or a political activist group.

SeaChange's specialty is multi-screen video software, and analysts like what they see. The pros are targeting a profit of $0.16 a share out of SeaChange for the quarter, well ahead of the $0.11 a share it rang up a year earlier.

Thursday
Food stocks are on Thursday's menu, even if Smithfield Foods (NYS: SFD) and United Natural Foods (NAS: UNFI) are rarely found at the same dinner table. United Natural Foods is an independent distributor of natural, organic, and specialty foods. Smithfield produces pork, meat, and poultry items. Both companies are expected to post improving profitability.

Friday
Friday will be a good day for yoga pants -- if you have the $100 to spare. It's true that lululemon athletica's (NAS: LULU) workout duds aren't cheap, but that's also the allure. The fast-growing Canadian retailer has been delivering huge comps growth in recent quarters. We'll see if this iffy summer has scared away customers from paying top dollar for fashionable yet practical athletic apparel.

Until next week, I remain,
Rick Munarriz

At the time thisarticle was published The Motley Fool owns shares of Lululemon Athletica. Motley Fool newsletter services have recommended buying shares of Lululemon Athletica. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.Longtime Fool contributorRick Munarrizrecommends windshield wiper fluid when trying to look forward. He is also part of theRule Breakersnewsletter research team, seeking out tomorrow's ultimate growth stocks a day early. He does not own shares in any of the companies in this story.

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