Jabil Circuit (JBL) shares are rising today after the company reported earnings last night, posting a fiscal-Q2 profit of $55.4 million, or 25 cents per share. Excluding one-time items, JBL earned 54 cents per share on revenue of $3.9 billion. Analysts had forecast a profit of 51 cents per share on revenue of $3.91 billion. JBL also forecast Q3 earnings of 55 to 59 cents per share on revenue of $4.1 to $4.2 billion. Analysts are looking for a profit of 54 cents per share on revenue of $4.04 billion. If you think that the stock won't fall by too much in the coming months, then now could be a good time to look at a bullish hedged trade on JBL.

JBL opened this morning at $20.42. So far today the stock has hit a low of $20.10 and a high of $21.30. As of 12:30, JBL is trading at $21.00 up 2.07 (10.9%). The chart for JBL looks neutral and S&P gives JBL a neutral 3 STARS (out of 5) hold ranking.

Quarterly reports from Oracle (ORCL), Discover (DFS) and Tiffany (TIF) will highlight news on the earnings front this week.

Elsewhere on the economic calendar, the focus will be on housing, with existing home sales data due from the National Association of Realtors on Monday, new home sales numbers from the Census Bureau on Wednesday and data on housing starts released on Thursday.

Also watch for durable goods orders in February and the final GDP for the fourth quarter.

Jabil Circuit's (JBL) 52-week high as of Monday was $18.49. The stock closed yesterday's regular session at $17.66. During Monday's extended-hours session, the shares were up 4.6% to $18.47 in reaction to the fiscal first-quarter report that was released after the bell. I'd say the extended-hours traders were pretty happy about the tech company's fiscal first-quarter report.

TheFly indicates that earnings of 61 cents per share went beyond the overall estimate by six pennies. Also, second-quarter guidance looks excellent.

Analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters seem to think that Jabil Circuit (JBL) could be the biggest earnings winner of the week. The Florida-based tech company is scheduled to discuss its fiscal first-quarter 2011 financial results after the market closes today, December 20, in a conference call at 4:30 PM (ET) with CEO Timothy Main and CFO Forbes Alexander. You can catch a live webcast of the call at the company's website.

During the three months that ended in November, the Florida-based tech company closed a note offering. Analysts expect Jabil to report that earnings for that period jumped 41.8% from a year ago to 55 cents per share, as well as that revenue increased 28.4% to $3.9 billion

Companies continue to file quarterly reports late in the season, and a few are poised to spread some early holiday cheer for investors this week. Analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters expect strong earnings results from Nike (NKE), Bed Bath & Beyond (BBBY) and Darden Restaurants (DRI), among others. Here's a quick look (for more details, see the DailyFinance Week in Preview).

Analysts forecast Nike's fiscal-second quarter earnings to come in at 88 cents per share, a 13.6% increase from the same period of last year. The world's leading athletic footwear maker also is expected to post revenue of $4.8 billion for the three months that ended in November. That's 9.3% more than the same period a year earlier. Note that Nike's earnings have not fallen short of consensus estimates in the past five quarters.

Analyst Upgrades

• Intel (INTC) was upgraded to overweight from equal weight and Autodesk (ADSK) to equal weight from underweight at Morgan Stanley.
• Citigroup upgraded Blackrock (BLK) to buy from hold.
• 99c Only Stores (NDN) was upgraded to buy from hold at Deutsche Bank.
• PetSmart (PETM) was upgraded to overweight from equal weight at Barclays.
• Piper Jaffray upgraded Ruth's Hospitality (RUTH) and Morton's Restaurant (MRT) to overweight from neutral.
• BioMed Realty (BMR) was upgraded to market perform from underperform at FBR Capital.
• Wells Fargo upgraded Piedmont (PDM) to market perform from underperform.

One of the most prominent quarterly reports scheduled this week, as the quarter winds down, comes from Walgreen (WAG). Analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters are looking for the drugstore chain operator to report Tuesday that its fiscal fourth-quarter earnings were about the same as a year ago, or 45 cents per share. Note, though, that Walgreen fell short of earnings expectations in the previous two quarters.

During the three months that ended in August, Deerefield, Ill.-based Walgreen launched a social responsibility website and boosted its dividend. Revenue for that period is expected to total $16.8 billion, which is a 7.3% increase from the same period of last year. And for the full year, analysts forecast EPS of $2.12 (+4.7%) on revenue of $67.4 billion (+6.4%).

Last time around, I gave a positive review of an earnings release from Jabil Circuit (JBL). Unfortunately, the stock had dipped following my remarks. Today, however, shares of the tech entity are rallying on Q3 numbers. And, quite frankly, I remain positive on the company's prospects.

At the time of this writing (I'm composing this during early-afternoon trading), the stock was up over 10%. Volume is excellent. The one-year chart, on the other hand, isn't so laudable. Toward the right side of the picture, one can see some up-down-sideways action; might be a little too noisy for some.

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

• Adobe Systems Inc. (ADBE) reported that Q1 revenue was up but earnings declined sharply, and it offered guidance.
• Best Buy Inc. (BBY) shares rallied after it topped Q4 earnings expectations and offered encouraging guidance.
• Brinker International Inc. (EAT) raised its outlook for fiscal 2010 and also increased its quarterly dividend.
• China Automotive Systems Inc. (CAAS) reported that its revenue had doubled and it beat earnings expectations.
• ConAgra Foods Inc. (CAG) Q3 earnings matched estimates and revenue was flat, and it reaffirmed its outlook.
• Finish Line Inc. (FINL) shares rallied after it reported that Q4 earnings came in better than analysts' expected.

Jabil Circuit (JBL), a tech entity that provides solutions to companies in the electronics industry, experienced some heavy selling after the market read through the second-quarter release. In fact, at the time of this writing, my screen was showing the shares down by almost 10%. And, as you can imagine, volume was compelling.

Things didn't seem too bad. Income on a core basis came in at 29 cents per diluted share. Last year at this time, the business took in 13 cents per diluted share on the same basis. According to Reuters, that 29-cent figure beat estimates by a penny. Plus, the guidance for the third quarter looks relatively good, at least to me, compared to what the analysts were thinking.

Here are a few highlights from this past week's earnings coverage on BloggingStocks:

• Cintas Corp. (CTAS) received an analyst's downgrade following its Q2 earnings report.
• ConAgra Foods Inc. (CAG) shares spiked after it posted better-than-expected Q2 earnings.
• Finish Line Inc. (FINL) posted surprise Q3 earnings, ending a streak of quarterly losses.
• Giga Media Ltd. (GIGM) was downgraded due to its disappointing Q2 report and lack of visibility.

Jabil Circuit (JBL - option chain) shares are rising today after the company reported earnings last night, posting a first-quarter profit of $28.3 million, or 13 cents per share. JBL's core earnings came in at 32 cents per share on revenue of $3.1 billion, topping analysts' forecasts of 29 cents per share on revenue of $3.1 billion. If you think that the stock won't fall by too much in the coming months, then now could be a good time to look at a bullish hedged trade on JBL.

JBL opened this morning at $16.01. So far today the stock has hit a low of $15.76 and a high of $16.49. As of 11:55, JBL is trading at $16.46 up $1.44 (9.6%). The chart for JBL looks bullish and S&P gives JBL a positive 4 STARS (out of 5) buy ranking.

Even in a holiday shortened week so close to the end of the calendar year, there are still some earnings reports dribbling in. Question is, will any of the companies reporting quarterly results this week offer up a gift for investors?

Apropos of the season, analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters have high expectations for American Greetings Corp.'s (AM) fiscal third quarter 2010 earnings. The nation's second largest provider of greeting cards announced record second quarter results and declared a quarterly dividend during the three months that ended in November. American Greetings is expected to report that earnings rose 43.9% from a year ago to $0.66 per share. Revenue for the quarter is expected to total $445.4 million, or 1.9% lower than a year ago. So far, the full-year forecast is for its profit to more than double to $2.00 per share while revenue falls 5.6% from a year ago to $1.6 billion. This Cleveland-based company creamed earnings estimates in the past two quarters.

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

• Accenture Ltd. (NYSE: ACN) lower Q4 earnings met analysts' expectations but the Q1 outlook was weak.
• Cal-Maine Foods Inc. (NASDAQ: CALM) posted a Q1 net loss and said it will skip its dividend this quarter.
• Cephalon Inc. (NASDAQ: CEPH) earnings prospects for 2010 resulted in an analyst's downgrade.
• Darden Restaurants Inc. (NYSE: DRI) Q1 earnings beat by a penny but revenue fell short of estimates.
• Gannett Inc. (NYSE: GCI) shares rose after it forecast Q3 earnings above Wall Street estimates.

Jabil Circuit (NYSE: JBL), a provider of solutions to the electronics industry, as well as a business that counts Flextronics (NASDAQ: FLEX) as a colleague, has been in an uptrend. If you check out a year-to-date chart for the company's stock, you'll understand what I mean. And frankly, I admit that I've been too bearish on this situation. When I pontificated on Jabil's Q3 results, I didn't think the company was a strong idea. Well, it's gone up since then.

So, what should we make of the Q4 results, which were reported Tuesday after the bell? Again, we see big declines. Net sales dropped 15%, and earnings per diluted share on an adjusted basis plunged to 16 cents from the 30 cents seen in the year-ago period.