3 Big Stocks to Watch Next Week, 24 AUGUST

 Earnings season has slowed down now, but it doesn't mean that market-moving stock reports are over until October. A handful of popular companies are delivering fresh financials next week. They can move the market.

CrowdStrike (NASDAQ: CRWD), Five Below (NASDAQ: FIVE), and Salesforce (NYSE: CRM) are some of the names that I'll be watching out for. Let's go over why you may want to keep on eye on their quarterly updates, too.

CrowdStrike 

Nothing matters more for a business than protecting itself from hackers and other baddies in cyberspace, and CrowdStrike has emerged as a leading provider of cloud-based security solutions for enterprises. The stock has risen 40% so far this year, and it's hoping to keep the gains coming when it reports on Wednesday afternoon. 

CrowdStrike had a "beat and raise" performance last time. It has routinely clocked in ahead of Wall Street targets for adjusted earnings, but the company also broke out of the red for the quarter on a reported basis. It was the market darling's first positive non-adjusted earnings as a public company.

Analysts see revenue climbing 35% in next week's report, the midpoint of the guidance that CrowdStrike itself provided three months ago. Those same Wall Street pros are forecasting adjusted earnings to climb at an even heartier 56% clip. With its history of beating analyst expectations and the stock's big gains, it's fair to say that it will need more than just a garden variety beat after the market close on Wednesday.

CrowdStrike is popular for a reason. It's a rising star gaining market share in a growing niche. There are few things more appetizing than a company carving out a thicker slice of an expanding pie. It also has a cash-rich balance sheet, providing a safety net if the economy goes south, as well as giving it the opportunity to make a strategic acquisition if its buoyant stock price isn't acceptable currency. CrowdStrike is definitely a name to watch in the coming week.

Five Below

Shifting gears to the shopping space, retailers make up many of the companies reporting this time of year given fiscal years concluding at the end of January. Five Below also issues its latest financials on Wednesday afternoon, discussing its fiscal second quarter for the three months that ended in July.

True to its name, Five Below is a deep discounter where most of the items it sells are priced at the $5 level or below. The Philadelphia-based retailer prides itself on being more than just a discounter, taking a "cheap chic" approach that has appealed to younger audiences. It's not just dollar-store junk or cheap consumable essentials that draw customers to the 1,367-store chain.

A few thrift stores that have already reported this earnings season have held up well on the top line, but flopped on the bottom line. Deal-seeking shoppers are spending more on food and other consumables, items that historically carry much leaner margins than mainstream products. Thankfully, Five Below's offerings skew toward higher-margin evergreen merchandise. Analysts see sales and earnings growth in the low teens, which also happens to be the age of a strong target audience. 

Salesforce

Also jumping in on the Aug. 30 post-close earnings party, Salesforce will offer its fiscal second-quarter numbers on Wednesday afternoon. With its $200 billion market cap, Salesforce is one of the largest companies reporting earnings results next week.

Growth has slowed for the cloud computing pioneer that many organizations rely on for their customer relationship management (CRM) needs. The 18% top-line gain it posted in fiscal 2023 is its weakest increase in at least the last 20 years. Revenue continues to decelerate sharply early in fiscal 2024, with Salesforce prioritizing bottom-line gains and efficiency over top-line growth.

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