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

• Best Buy Inc. (NYSE: BBY) was downgraded by one analyst ahead of next week's Q2 earnings report.
• Campbell Soup Co. (NYSE: CPB) better-than-expected Q4 and full-year profit failed to impact the share price.
• FedEx Corp. (NYSE: FDX) boosted its Q1 earnings guidance ahead of next week's quarterly report.
• JoS. A. Bank Clothiers Inc. (NASDAQ: JOSB) saw its Q2 earnings jump higher than expected.
• Korn/Ferry International (NYSE: KFY) swung to a Q1 net loss as revenue plunged despite cost cuts.
• lululemon athletica inc. (NASDAQ: LULU) strong Q2 numbers topped estimates and drove shares higher.

Wednesday, Men's Wearhouse (NYSE: MW) posted solid earnings results but a disappointing forecast. Just a week ago, JoS. A. Bank (NASDAQ: JOSB) saw its second-quarter earnings increase 40% as well. The company earned 68 cents per share in the quarter, easily outpacing expectations for a profit of 54 cents per share. Unlike Men's Wearhouse, JoS. A. Bank did not issue a disappointing forecast -- so the stock has vaulted above prior resistance at the $44 level, which could now act as support.

Turning to a monthly chart for JoS. A. Bank, the stock is facing a crucial point -- as it is nearing its 2004 high in the $48 region. If the stock can topple this region, we could see it challenge the all-time highs set in September 2008. Considering the fact that the company's sales grew 10% in the latest quarter, I feel that a new all-time high may be a short jump away.

Men's Wearhouse (NYSE: MW) issued second-quarter results after the bell on Wednesday. In terms of bottom-line performance, the retailer passed with flying colors. Earnings per share increased to 75 cents per share from the adjusted 72 cents per share observed a year ago. Granted, that's only a three-penny difference, but when it comes to expectations, well, they were blown out the door. According to Reuters, Wall Street was only preparing for 60 cents per share.

Unfortunately, the top-line picture wasn't so pretty. Total sales fell 3.5%, and same-store sales for all of the company's brands declined. The flagship Men's Wearhouse concept saw a comps dip of 2%.

Investors and analysts may be wondering whether the market rally is really over, and whether this signals more trouble ahead for the economy. Well, the Federal Reserve is scheduled to release its next Beige Book report of economic conditions on Wednesday, offering a glimpse of where things stand. The Beige Book report in July suggested that, in some of the 12 Fed districts, the economy appeared to be stabilizing, suggesting that the recession may have reached its bottom, but offering little sign of a recovery. Retail activity remained weak and employment numbers were not good. Yet the minutes of the FOMC August meeting seemed a bit more optimistic about the economy.

In addition to the Beige Book report, the TIPP Economic Optimism Index is scheduled to be released Tuesday, and the University of Michigan Consumer Sentiment Index comes out Friday. So by the end of the week, we could have a good gauge of the mood about the U.S. economy.

Every year I find myself asking the same question: What to get dad for Father's Day. Well, Kiplinger's offers not to get our dads the same old presents -- another tie, another power tool -- but stocks in companies he probably likes or uses their products. That's a great idea, I thought, and decided to counter with five of my own.

• Kiplinger's suggests: Diageo (NYSE: DEO), the seller of such brands as Johnnie Walker, Smirnoff, Guinness and José Cuervo. Diageo has held up better than most during the recession -- thanks to a balanced portfolio of products, with higher exposure to mid-price, mainstream brands and less exposure to ultra-premium brands. The shares look reasonably priced. At $56.01, Diageo trades at 15 times estimated June 2009 earnings of $3.82 a share. The stock yields 2.8%.

• Another to consider: Molson Coors (NYSE: TAP), the seller of such brands as Coors, Blue Moon, Pilsner and Rickard's. Beer, probably even more so than hard liquor is supposed to hold better during a recession given the cheaper price point. The company's recent quarterly profits more than doubled. The shares trade at 13 times forward earnings of $3.33 and yield 2.2%.

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

• Barnes Group Inc. (NYSE: B) withdrew its 2009 earnings guidance due to uncertainty in transportation.
• Brown-Forman Corp. (NYSE: BF.B) Q4 profit beat estimates and it offered guidance for next year.
• Del Monte Foods Co. (NYSE: DLM) posted strong Q4 results on price increases and a better tax situation.
• FuelCell Energy Inc. (NASDAQ: FCEL) posted lower Q2 sales but announced a big order from South Korea.
• Men's Wearhouse Inc. (NYSE: MW) lower Q1 profit topped estimates but the outlook was in line.
• National Semiconductor Corp. (NYSE: NSM) Q4 net loss and fiscal-year profit both beat estimates.

Men's Wearhouse (NYSE: MW) reported first-quarter results after the close Monday. Earnings dropped 47% compared to a year ago. Although earnings contracted due to fewer customers, cost-cutting measures helped the company top the consensus estimate and forecast solid second-quarter earnings.

First-quarter earnings checked in at 10 cents per share for the quarter, down from 19 cents per share a year ago but far better than the Street's forecast loss of a penny per share. Quarterly sales dropped 6% to $464.1 million from $491.1 million a year ago, as clothing product sales dropped 7.6%. Nevertheless, sales topped the consensus estimate of $459.3 million.

After testifying before a Senate committee about AIG (NYSE: AIG) last week, the Fed's Ben Bernanke participates in a Council of Foreign Relations event Monday evening.

Economic data due to be released this week include wholesale trade and job vacancies for January on Tuesday morning, the U.S. Treasury budget for February on Wednesday, retail sales for February and business inventories for January on Thursday morning, and the U.S. trade balance for January on Friday morning.

Last week, JA Solar Holdings Co. Ltd. (NASDAQ: JASO) posted a quarterly loss and lowered its guidance. But as interest in alternative energy continues to grow, analysts polled by Thomson Financial are still looking for good things from solar energy concerns scheduled to report earnings this week.

Strong growth at Trina Solar Ltd. (NYSE: TSL) in the third quarter prompted it to lift its guidance back in October. Analysts expect the Chinese company to post profits that are 76.3% higher than a year ago, or $1.18 per share on revenues of $268.4 million (+225.0%). Though Trina Solar missed estimates in the second quarter, analysts on average recommend buying TSL. Shares are down 81.4% from a year ago and trading near an all-time low.

Earnings of rival LDK Solar Co. Ltd. (NYSE: LDK) are expect to have risen 47.9% to $0.71 per share on revenues of $486.7 million (+206.6%). Also based in China, LDK has not missed estimates in recent quarters; in fact, it blew past expectations in the second quarter. Yet the consensus recommendation is to hold LDK. Like Trina Solar, LDK's shares are trading near an all-time low; the share price has fallen 50.0% in the past year.

Analysts anticipate third-quarter earnings for Canadian Solar Inc. (NASDAQ: CSIQ) to be a whopping 96.3% higher than a year ago, or $0.54 per share on revenues of $248.0 million (+154.5%). The company easily topped estimates in the previous quarter. ReneSola Ltd. (NYSE: SOL) and Suntech Power Holdings Co. Ltd. (NYSE: STP) are also expected to report earnings growth of 29.7% ($0.37 per share) and 23.8% ($0.42 per share), respectively. All three of these stocks reached 52-week lows last week, and all are considered buys.

John Reese is an expert in analyzing the investment criteria of "legendary" advisors with time-tested strategies. And one market approach that may be of particular interest to investors during the current period of market turmoil is the value strategy developed by Benjamin Graham. (For more on this strategy, see our other post, "Three Rules of Value Investing".)

In his Validea newsletter, John reese explains, "Benjamin Graham -- considered the greatest investment guru by Warren Buffett -- built his reputation by using an extremely conservative, low-risk approach to investing." Buffett, incidentally, was Ben Graham's student.

Reese continues, "To Graham, preserving one's original capital was every bit as important as netting big gains. Having lived through the 1929 market crash, it's no surprise that the strategy Graham laid out in his classic book The Intelligent Investor was a conservative, loss-averse approach.

"To Graham, an investment wasn't something that could be turned into quick, easy profits; anything that offers such 'easy' rewards also comes with substantial risk, and Graham abhorred risk. In terms of specifics, Graham's approach limited risk in a number of ways, and my Graham-based model lays out several of those methods.

In short order, the shareholders of Washington Mutual (NYSE: WM) have lost billions. A tier-1 private equity investor, TPG, has lost $1.3 billion on the company. And, unfortunately, thousands of WaMu employees have lost their jobs.

However, there are some winners. For example, there are the short sellers. JP Morgan (NYSE: JPM) is also likely to do well since the firm bought WaMu's assets for a mere $1.9 billion.

But there appears to be yet another interesting beneficiary: Alan Fishman. He is WaMu's CEO, who took the top job 18 days ago.

As should be no surprise, he signed a juicy contract: a $7.5 million signing bonus and a lump-sum payment for severance that comes to $6.15 million. In other words, if he leaves the company, he'll walk away with $13.65 million.

That's a pretty good deal in light of the fact that WaMu is the biggest bank collapse ever.

Moreover, I suppose it is yet further evidence of why Americans have low regard for the financial system. And despite huge bailouts, it's probably a good bet that little will change.

Tom Taulli is the author of various books, including The Complete M&A Handbook and The Edgar Online Guide to Decoding Financial Statements. He is also the founder of BizEquity, a valuation website.

Results for the tech stocks in last week's preview were a mixed bag, some beats, some misses, some in line. By and large, expectations for tech companies reporting results this week remain high, though. Here's what analysts surveyed by Thomson Financial are anticipating in the way of earnings, as compared to the same period of the previous year.

• Solarfun Power Holdings Co. Ltd. (NASDAQ: SOLF): $1.48 EPS (+73.0%) on sales of $1.3 billion (+171.0%)
• Marvell Technology Group Ltd. (NASDAQ: MRVL): $0.21 EPS (+71.4%) on sales of $836.7 million (+27.4%)
• Solera Holdings Inc. (NYSE: SLH): $0.29 EPS (+51.7%) on sales of $137.0 million (+11.8%)
• Applied Signal Technology Inc. (NASDAQ: APSG): $0.14 EPS (+42.9%) on sales of $46.4 million (+17.4%)
• China Finance Online Co. Ltd. (NASDAQ: JRJC): $0.14 EPS (+42.6%) on sales of $13.3 million (+131.5%)
• OSI Systems Inc. (NASDAQ: OSIS): $0.38 EPS (+36.8%) on sales of $162.0 million (+6.0%)
• LaBarge Inc. (AMEX: LB): $0.27 EPS (+33.3%) on sales of $71.6 million (+10.4%)
• Esterline Technologies Corp. (NYSE: ESL): $0.69 EPS (+11.6%) on sales of $374.6 million (+14.8%)
• Dell Inc. (NASDAQ: DELL): $0.36 EPS (+11.1%) on sales of $15.9 billion (+7.8%)
• HEICO Corp. (NYSE: HEI): $0.46 EPS (+13.0%) on sales of $147.1 million (+10.5%)
• Daktronics Inc. (NASDAQ: DAKT): $0.17 EPS (flat) on sales of $141.5 million (+17.0%)
• Novell Inc. (NASDAQ: NOVL): $0.05 EPS (flat) on sales of $241.4 million (-0.7%)
• Omnivision Technologies Inc. (NASDAQ: OVTI): $0.29 EPS (-17.1%) on sales of $172.5 million (-0.4%)
• Sigma Designs Inc. (NASDAQ: SIGM): $0.39 EPS (-18.8%) on sales of $58.7 million (+37.9%)

Before the bell: Futures higher as oil drops further

Exxon Mobil (NYSE: XOM) is set to face disgruntled shareholders, including members of the Rockefeller family at its annual meeting today. They want to split split Exxon's chairman and chief executive positions. Other proposals include seven about the company's environmental policies.

The Wall Street Journal reported that Bear Stearns (NYSE: BSC) plans to hand over documents to the Securities and Exchange Commission showing that several Wall Street firms, including Goldman Sachs (NYSE: GS), Citadel Investment Group and Paulson & Co., cut their exposure to Bear in the weeks leading up to its collapse.

United Parcel Service Inc (NYSE: UPS) shares rose in Europe after Merrill Lynch upgraded the company's stock from Neutral to Buy.

While the earnings season is beginning to wind down for the current quarter, there are still plenty of results to come. Here's a peek at what analysts surveyed by Thomson Financial are expecting from companies scheduled to report results in the final week of May 2008.

These companies are expected to post earnings growth, compared to the same period in the previous year:

• Omnivison Technologies (NASDAQ: OVTI) up 81.3% to 32 cents per share, on $178.20 million in revenue
• Lions Gate Entertainment (NYSE: LGF) up 48.6% to 37 cents per share, on $410.93 million in revenue
• Big Lots Inc. (NYSE: BIG) up 27.7% to 36 cents per share, on $1.14 billion in revenue
• Costco Wholesale Corp. (NASDAQ: COST) up 13.8% to 65 cents per share, on $16.32 billion in revenue
• Tiffany & Co. (NYSE: TIF) up 10.0% to 40 cents per share, on $648.87 million in revenue
• HJ Heinz Co. (NYSE: HNZ) up 9.8% to 61 cents per share, on $2.67 billion in revenue
• Dollar Tree Inc. (NASDAQ: DLTR) up 9.5% to 42 cents per share, on $1.05 billion in revenue

These companies are expected to report earnings declines:

• Sears Holdings Corp. (NASDAQ: SHLD) down 86.4% to 15 cents per share, on $11.41 billion in revenue
• Men's Wearhouse Inc. (NYSE: MW) down 70.6% to 22 cents per share, on $476.98 million in revenue
• Polo Ralph Lauren Corp. (NYSE: RL) down 4.4% to 65 cents per share, on $1.15 billion in revenue
• Dell Inc. (NASDAQ: DELL) down 2.9% to 33 cents per share, on $15.66 billion in revenue

TiVo Inc. (NASDAQ: TIVO) is expected to swing to a loss of a penny per share, compared to a penny profit a year ago, and report $55.62 million in revenue. And analysts expect Borders Group Inc. (NYSE: BGP) to narrow its loss 7.8% to 47 cents per share, on $801.11 million in revenue.

Visit AOL Money & Finance for more earnings coverage.

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

• BJ's Wholesale Club Inc. (NYSE: BJ) beat fourth-quarter estimates on lower costs and strong sales.
• Ciena Corp. (NASDAQ: CIEN) first-quarter profit doubled on strong sales, lifting the sector.
• Clean Harbors Inc. (NASDAQ: CLHB) trounced expectations as it completes acquisitions.
• Del Monte Foods Co. (NYSE: DLM) beat estimates on cost cutting and raised its guidance.
• HSBC Holdings PLC ADS (NYSE: HBC) profit soared in 2007, beating analysts' expectations.
• Intel Corp. (NASDAQ: INTC) lowered its first quarter earnings forecast, citing weak chip prices.
• LeapFrog Enterprises Inc. (NYSE: LF) narrowed its losses for the fourth quarter and full year.
• LKQ Corp. (NASDAQ: LKQX) beat fourth-quarter estimates and raised its guidance.
• Midway Games Inc. (NYSE: MWY) widened its losses in both the fourth quarter and full year.
• Staples Inc. (NASDAQ: SPLS) reported a solid fourth quarter and increased its annual dividend.
• TiVo Inc. (NASDAQ: TIVO) posted a smaller-than-expected fourth-quarter loss due to licensing deals.
• Trump Entertainment Resorts Inc. (NASDAQ: TRMP) fourth-quarter and full-year losses widened.
• Universal Health Services (NYSE: UHS) beat earnings expectations but matched revenue estimates.

Also, Dell Inc. (NASDAQ: DELL) struggles to maintain profitability against competitor Hewlett-Packard Co. (NYSE: HPQ). See Timothy Sykes's take on Warren Buffett's annual letter to Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE: BRK.A) shareholders. And Zac Bissonnette is interested in where earnings actually come from.

Upcoming results to watch for include Kroger Co. (NYSE: KR), Boston Beer Co. (NYSE: SAM), J. Crew Group Inc. (NYSE: JCG), Jones Soda Co. (NASDAQ: JSDA), Blackstone Group (NYSE: BX), and Men's Wearhouse Inc. (NYSE: MW).

Visit AOL Money & Finance for more earnings coverage.