This Week on Wall Street

Economic Data

Today, the May job openings and labor turnover survey, or JOLTS, is released. Every month the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) conducts the survey to measure job vacancies. In April, job openings tumbled to roughly 5 million—the lowest total since December 2014.

Tomorrow, the consumer credit report for May is published. In April, consumer borrowing fell by the fastest rate since 1943. A corresponding savings rate metric hit a record high during April as spending dried up and Americans received direct payments from the government. For context, mortgage loans are not included in the consumer credit report.

On Thursday, May wholesale inventories are due, but all eyes will be on weekly initial jobless claims. The prior reading of the report showed that another 1.43 million Americans filed for unemployment insurance. Currently, the median forecast for this week’s reading is showing another 1.4 million Americans filing for jobless claims.

On Friday, June’s Producer Price Index (PPI) is published. Similar to the Consumer Price Index, this metric tracks price movements over time, albeit more for businesses rather than consumers. The index helps companies think about adjusting prices in long-term purchasing agreements and also sheds light on inflation trends.

Earnings

Today, Levi Strauss & Co (LEVI) is scheduled to report after the bell. Similar to other retailers, Levi’s was forced to close their stores for most of the fiscal 2020 second quarter. Sales for the company fell by at least 50%, but investors will be looking to see if a rebound is in the works—especially in places like China, where stores opened in March and April.

Bed Bath & Beyond Inc. (BBBY) is scheduled to report its latest results tomorrow, and store closures will almost certainly impact the specialty retailer. However, the company did ramp up curb-side sales in many markets. Additionally, Bed Bath & Beyond is a go-to for home furnishing products, a segment that has performed well for retailers like The Home Depot (HD) and Target (TGT) in recent weeks. Simply Good Foods Co (SMPL), AAR Corp (AIR), and Loop Industries (LOOP) are also scheduled to report.

On Thursday, Walgreens Boots Alliance Inc. (WBA) reports before the bell. The pharmacy-led health and wellbeing company has unfortunately been a Dow Jones Industrial Average laggard recently. That said, its stock did jump roughly 15% in the two weeks following its last earnings release, which was better than expected. Shares then turned, and have not recovered over the past seven weeks. Walgreens has set up numerous drive-through COVID-19 testing centers, but some investors are wondering how much those efforts helped the company’s bottom line.

PriceSmart (PSMT), an international warehouse club, is planning to report its latest results on Friday. The company is the largest operator of membership warehouse clubs in Central America, the Caribbean, and Colombia serving over 3 million cardholders. PriceSmart just added its eighth location in Costa Rica and is currently building out another venue in Colombia. As the virus spreads through Central and Latin America, investors will be keeping an eye on membership renewal rates and fee income to see how shoppers respond to the pandemic in the regions PriceSmart serves.

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