Here are some highlights from this past week's earnings coverage from BloggingStocks:

• AnnTaylor Stores Corp. (NYSE: ANN) reported a smaller-than-expected Q1 loss as sales slumped.
• Barnes & Noble Inc. (NYSE: BKS) smaller-than-expected Q1 net loss sent shares higher.
• Children's Place Retail Stores Inc. (NASDAQ: PLCE) solid Q1 results were in line with expectations.
• Dick's Sporting Goods Inc. (NYSE: DKS) posted higher-than-expected Q1 results but same-store sales fell.
• Gap Inc. (NYSE: GPS) lower Q1 earnings beat expectations and lower revenue was in line.

Hormel Foods (NYSE: HRL) hasn't been a bad stock. Its recent performance is firmly in the green. Shares of Hormel have increased in value by 8% year-to-date. Over the last six months, the stock is up by roughly 16%.

Now we come to the food entity's second-quarter report, which was issued on Thursday. Do the numbers indicate that the stock will continue to trend higher? Or is now the time to sell?

I remember Toronto during SARS. As one of the harder hit areas, it was not a happy place. It was the end of winter, but that miserable, cold winter just didn't want to end. People walked the streets in a gloomy haze, afraid to take the subway and giving dirty looks to anyone brazen enough to cough in public. Worse, I couldn't even visit a friend in the hospital. All things considered though, in global pandemic terms, it was over relatively quickly. Let's hope swine flu will be the same.

In the meantime, let's put on our investors hats and see what's in store for some stocks:

Travel and tourist stocks
This is one of the worst hit areas, especially airlines, as people may cancel their travel plans. For example, AMR Corp. (NYSE: AMR) traded over 9 percent lower an hour after the open. Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE: RCL) was down over 15 percent. In fact UBS downgraded these airlines and hotels this morning: AMR, Continental Airlines (NYSE: CAL), Host Hotels and Resorts (NYSE: HST), Lasalle Hotel Properties (NYSE: LHO), Marriott (NYSE: MAR), United Airlines (NASDAQ: UAUA), US Airways (NYSE: LCC). Carnival Cruise Lines (NYSE: CCL) also declined considerably. Best to stay away from the sector.

Here are some highlights from this past week's earnings coverage from BloggingStocks:

• Bidz.com Inc. (NASDAQ: BIDZ) Q4 earnings release included notice about an SEC investigation.
• Dell Inc. (NASDAQ: DELL) saw net income drop by almost 50%, falling short of estimates.
• Ducommun Inc. (NYSE: DCO) received an analyst's downgrade after its Q4 earnings release.
• Gap Inc. (NYSE: GPS) said Q4 earnings fell due to weakness at Gap and Old Navy stores.
• General Motors Corp. (NYSE: GM) worse-than-expected results prompted speculation about its survival.

Just last week, Hormel Foods Corporation (NYSE: HRL) surprised investors with stronger-than-expected first-quarter earnings. Sales during the period were boosted by healthy demand for the company's recession-friendly canned ham-like product, Spam. Today, it seems that Standard & Poor's is revealing its own soft spot for potted meat, announcing that HRL will join its storied S&P 500 Index as of the close of trading on March 3.

Hormel will replace American Capital Ltd. (NASDAQ: ACAS) in the closely watched broad-market index. The latter stock has given up nearly 96% of its value during the past year, and it's extending those losses today with a plunge of more than 16%.

Here are some highlights from this past week's earnings coverage from BloggingStocks:

• Apollo Group Inc. (NASDAQ: APOL) reported that Q4 revenue soared despite the recession.
• Baidu Inc. (NASDAQ: BIDU) posted strong annual revenue, but at a slowing growth rate.
• Career Education Corp. (NASDAQ: CECO) easily topped Q4 earnings expectations, lifting shares up.
• Comcast Corp. (NASDAQ: CMCSA) Q4 earnings beat expectations and it increased its dividend.
• CVS Caremark Corp. (NYSE: CVS) shares jumped after it reported higher earnings in Q4.
• Digital River Inc. (NASDAQ: DRIV) shares soared on better-than-expected Q4 earnings and revenue.
• Expedia Inc. (NASDAQ: EXPE) reported dismal results due to a huge good will write down.
• Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. (NYSE: GT) posted a greater-than-expected Q4 net loss and announced job cuts.
• Hormel Foods Corp. (NYSE: HRL) exceeded Q1 earnings expectations due to the popularity of SPAM.

Shares of Hormel Foods Corporation (NYSE: HRL) are on the upswing today, after the packaged-foods firm exceeded analysts' first-quarter earnings expectations. The company's upside surprise is partially attributable to strong sales of its infamous canned meat, Spam, which successfully lured in cost-conscious consumers.

During the recently concluded quarter, HRL banked a profit of $81.4 million, or 60 cents per share. That's an 8% slide from the same quarter last year, but analysts were expecting a profit of just 51 cents per share. Net sales rose 4% to $1.69 billion, with strong results for Dinty Moore stews, Hormel chili, and the aforementioned Spam.

We don't expect to find investment advice from opinion columns, but New York Times columnist Frank Rich unleashed a quartet to those willing to read between the lines in his recent piece "Herbert Hoover Lives."

Here's the money quote (no pun intended) from the theater critic turned political pundit: "What are Americans still buying? Big Macs, Campbell's soup, Hershey's chocolate and Spam -- the four food groups of the apocalypse."

Typically, when the economy enters a recession, companies that are in the consumer non-durable sector, i.e., consumer staples, see their stocks trade higher as money flows into bulletproof subsectors of the economy that don't suffer from spending cuts.

Companies like Proctor & Gamble (NYSE: PG), Heinz (NYSE: HNZ), Hormel (NYSE: HRL), Kraft (NYSE: KFT), General Mills (NYSE: GIS), Johnson & Johnson (NYSE: JNJ), Pepsi (NYSE: PEP), Coca-Cola (NYSE: KO), Campbell Soup (NYSE: CPB), Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE: CL) and even Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE: BRK.B), which was down a whopping 49% before getting a year-end bounce.

I think Warren needs to get off TV and get back to work.

My point here is that all of these fortress names got beat up to the tune of 30% to 50% when they were supposed to be the go-to names that would put in a stealth rally in a bear market.

Seems the kitchen and bathroom stocks didn't work this time around.

Bryan Perry is a contributor to OptionsZone.com.

Hormel Foods (NYSE: HRL) closed at $28.44 Tuesday. HRL is scheduled to report Q4 EPS on November 25. HRL overall option implied volatility of 41 is above its 26-week average of 30 according to Track Data, suggesting larger price movement.

Sanderson Farms (NYSE: SAFM) closed at $27.49 Tuesday. SAFM filed a $1 billion shelf registration for common and preferred shares on October 9 on the anticipation of using the proceeds to fund acquisitions. SAFM November option implied volatility of 91 is above its 26-week average of 58 according Track Data, suggesting larger price movement.

Pilgrim's Pride (NYSE: PPC), the largest chicken company in the U.S., closed at $1.40 Tuesday. PPC announced on October 27 lenders have agreed to provide continued liquidity under credit facilities. PPC December option implied volatility is at 239 according to Track Data, suggesting large price fluctuations.

Smithfield Foods (NYSE: SFD), a processor of packaged meats, closed at $9.49 Tuesday. SFD November option implied volatility of 166 is above its 26-week average of 88 according to Track Data, suggesting larger price movement.

Tyson (NYSE: TSN) closed $8.05 Tuesday. TSN is scheduled to report Q4 EPS on November 11. TSN November option implied volatility is at 133, December is at 124; above its 26-week average of 54 according to Track Data, suggesting larger price fluctuations.

Option Update is provided by Stock Specialist Paul Foster of theflyonthewall.com

Stock futures were trading down as Fannie Mae posted its fourth straight quarterly loss. Investors were awaiting word from a government report on worker productivity to see if there is any sign of an economic rebound. Those figures, though, proved disappointing.

Bloomberg News reported that worker productivity in the U.S. grew at a lower-than-expected rate in the second quarter as employers cut jobs to weather the jump in raw-material expenses. "Employers eliminated 165,000 jobs from April through June to shore up profits, and still managed to get more output with fewer workers," the news service says. "Gains in productivity help lower inflation and bolster the Federal Reserve's forecast that prices will moderate."

Fannie Mae (NYSE: FNM) posted its fourth straight quarterly loss and slashed its dividend. The second-quarter net loss was $2.3 billion, or $2.54 a share. Excluding one-time items, the loss was $2.51 a share, compared with the 72-cent average estimate of 10 analysts in a Bloomberg survey. Shares tumbled more than 12% in pre-market trading.

This post is part of our Big Company, Small Town series, featuring large companies and the small towns in which they are headquartered.

Ah, Spam. Doesn't the word make your mouth water? Or maybe not. Either way, Spam must be given its due. It is the most famous of the mystery meats, those exciting concoctions of the meat-packing industry. It has been sold by the billions of cans since its invention in 1937. It helped feed the Allies and win World War Two. It is central to a Monty Python skit about Vikings in a greasy spoon, and now a Broadway musical. It provides a name for unwanted e-mail. It theoretically lasts forever. And it is a product of the Hormel Foods Corporation (NYSE: HRL).

Spam is made in several places, but its ancestral home and main production facility is in Austin, Minnesota, sometimes called Spam Town. Austin is the small town south of Minneapolis that is home to Hormel, proud maker of all things Spam. (I should note that Hormel would prefer that we write "SPAM luncheon meat" but I don't think we'll take that suggestion too seriously.)

Hormel has long dominated the town of Austin, and not just because the Spam Museum is located there. It is by far the largest employer in town and the majority of workers in Austin work for Hormel, producing many of the company's meaty foods. Hormel's roots in the town go deep. Drawn by the town's good rail and river access, George A. Hormel opened a meat packing business there in 1891, and his small company eventually grew into the billion-dollar colossus that today owns a dizzying array of food brands, from Chi-Chi's and Valley Fresh to Dinty Moore and, of course, Spam. (Does it seem fair that one company gets to own both Dinty Moore and Spam?)

In tough financial times, certain food products and food preparation ideas seem to gain increasing favor with consumers. People try to find ways to prepare nutritious and interesting meals while gaining greater purchasing power from their hard-earned dollars.

Just the other day, some of us bloggers were engaged in a lively email chat regarding some of our tried-and-true strategies for stretching our grocery dollars. As you can guess, ramen noodles almost immediately took center stage. I was entertained with stories of the many ways that the slender pasta can be made quite appealing. For instance, if you take any brand of chunky salsa, cut it 50% with water, add a sliced hot dog and pour the heated mixture over the noodles, it's really a very delicious and satisfying meal.

As the discussion ebbed, I couldn't help but be amazed that no one had mentioned SPAM, by Hormel Foods Corp. (NYSE: HRL). Surely, I thought, these people must know about the illustrious history of SPAM! Could they ignore the fact that SPAM has carried literally millions of people though hard times since prior to World War II? Though there is probably a ratio of three SPAM jokes to every one SPAM recipe, the fact remains that Hormel's SPAM, in all its variations, still sells exceptionally well. It sells even better as times get tough, as indicated by a recent Associated Press overview.

The Associated Press reports that Spam sales are on the rise. Cans of Spam -- a pig byproduct -- are flying off the shelf as consumers are turning more to lunch meats and other lower-cost foods to extend their already stretched food budgets.

As I posted, consumers are going on a recession diet. I had not thought of Spam as a way to play this trend. But its sales are up 10.6% and its manufacturer, Hormel Foods (NYSE: HRL) has seen its profits rise 14%. But the price of Spam is up more than Hormel's stock, with the average 12 oz. can costing about $2.62. That's an increase of 17 cents, or nearly 7% from the same time last year.

Despite rising prices, Spam seems like a good alternative to consumers. AP quotes Kimberly Quan, a stay-at-home mom of three, who has been feeding her family more Spam in the last six months as she tries to make her food budget go further. "It's canned meat and it's in the cupboard and if everything else is gone from the fridge, it's there."

Here are some highlights from this past week's earnings coverage from BloggingStocks:

• Aeropostale Inc. (NYSE: ARO) posted strong Q1 results on increased same-store sales.
• Analog Devices Inc. (NYSE: ADI) reported solid Q2 results and raised its Q3 guidance.
• BMC Software Inc. (NYSE: BMC) Q4 results beat estimates and it raised its full-year guidance.
• Charming Shoppes Inc. (NASDAQ: CHRS) posted a Q1 loss its worst sales decline in years.
• Ford Motor Co. (NYSE: F) warned that it doesn't expect 2009 profit despite some strength overseas.
• Gymboree Corp. (NASDAQ: GYMB) reported strong Q1 results due to higher retail sales.
• Hormel Foods Corp. (NYSE: HRL) posted solid Q2 results that beat Wall Street estimates by a penny.
• Intuitive Surgical Inc. (NASDAQ: ISRG) warned that it might not meet expectations for 2008.
• Limited Brands Inc. (NYSE: LTD) disappointing Q1 results were offset by a one-time sale of an asset.
• PetSmart Inc. (NASDAQ: PETM) posted weak Q1 results that beat estimates, and offered weak guidance.
• Salesforce.com Inc. (NYSE: CRM) reported strong Q1 results that led to analyst upgrades.
• Talbots Inc. (NYSE: TLB) restructuring costs and soft same-store sales dragged down Q1 earnings.
• Toro Co. (NYSE: TTC) Q2 profits and revenues declined but beat low expectations of analysts.

Additional earnings highlights:
Home Depot, Gap, Lenovo, Air France, Activision, Suntech and others
Hewlett-Packard, Target, Barnes & Noble, Campbell, Staples and others

Upcoming results to watch for include Borders (NYSE: BGP), Polo Ralph Lauren (NYSE: RL), TiVo (NASDAQ: TIVO), Big Lots (NYSE: BIG), Costco (NASDAQ: COST), Dell (NASDAQ: DELL), HJ Heinz (NYSE: HNZ), Sears (NASDAQ: SHLD), Lions Gate (NYSE: LGF), and Tiffany (NYSE: TIF).

Visit AOL Money & Finance for more earnings coverage.