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.

"Our safety-first portfolio is built using bottom-up, fundamental analysis to choose individual investments; one new buy in our portfolios is Darden Resaurants (DRI)," says James Stack.

The money manager and editor of InvesTech Market Analyst explains, "Darden is a destination dining experience. Unlike the pop-in chain restaurants where the meal is on the way to some other event, Darden's nearly 1,800 locations are in themselves the "event."

The U.S. recession, the worst in more than 25 years, has hit the restaurant sector hard: it's left a trail of bankrupt restaurant chains and broken business models.

But not Darden Restaurants (DRI), which will be a restaurant chain survivor, and that's a major reason I'm reiterating my buy rating for the company's shares, first recommended on June 25, 2009, at a price of $32.78.

Thanksgiving is a time when friends and family gather at home for a feast, but the restaurant industry is hoping that a good number of folks dine out amid their holiday shopping activities.

Given the tentative economic recovery and double-digit unemployment rate, it's doubtful that they'll get their wish. That's why our bearish pick is Darden Restaurants (DRI) -- the operator of Red Lobster, Olive Garden, The Capital Grille and LongHorn Steakhouse, to name a few.

Whether the market can keep pushing higher in 2010 despite our shaky economy is anyone's guess, but we hope that this rally has helped you recoup from some of the devastating losses most people experienced in 2008.

In the spirit of Thanksgiving, we want to give you six more reasons to be thankful this year. So we've put together a list six trades that should lead you to some very tasty profits in the near future.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE: DRI - option chain) stock traded lower Wednesday after the company, which includes Red Lobster and the Olive Garden, reported Q1 earnings Tuesday of $94.3 million. That is equal to 67 cents per share, which beat analysts' forecasts by a penny. However, Darden's net sales came in at $1.73 billion, missing analysts' forecasts of $1.78 billion by almost 3%. If you think this stock won't be rising too far in the coming months, then it could be a good time to look at a bearish hedged play on DRI.

DRI opened at $33.53 Wednesday. In morning trading the stock hit a high of $33.58 and a low of $32.51. As of 11:15, DRI was trading at $32.86, down $3.32 (-9.2%). The chart for DRI looks bearish and S&P gives DRI a negative 2 STARS (out of 5) sell ranking.

Restaurateur, Darden Restaurants (NYSE: DRI) announced that fourth-quarter net income checked in at 87 cents per share, up from 71 cents per share a year ago. The company also reported that sales increased to $1.97 billion from $1.82 billion. The eatery operator's sales were boosted by an extra week of business in the most recent quarter.

In a statement, the company's CEO Clarence Otis noted that the company is hoping for an improvement in overall restaurant industry conditions and sales trends, but the current challenging environment is likely to continue through all of fiscal 2010. Otis stated that "there are reasons to believe there might be some favorable changes. However, given the current level of uncertainty, we think it's prudent to be cautious in developing our plans for the year."

Darden Restaurants (NYSE: DRI) is a large player in the casual dining space. Names in its stable include Red Lobster, Olive Garden, and LongHorn Steakhouse.

With that diversification of offerings, DRI held up better than some in the restaurant space. As such, the recovery from the bottom has meant doubles instead of the triples or more.

DRI currently trades at around $34 per share -- which is cheap in my book. I would be a buyer of growth despite the gains in the near term. I rate DRI an A or Strong Buy.

Up next: Restaurant stock #3: Landry's Restaurants (LNY).

The current recession has touched all sectors. The rules of the game have been changed, and nobody is safe. The paradigm is shifting.

One of the consequences of the current state is a new-found appreciation for savings in the U.S. A consumer who does not spend is bad news for the retail sector, and it is bad news for an economy dependent on consumer spending.

The one glimmer of hope comes from the restaurant space. When it became clear that this recession would be long and deep, consumers clamped wallets shut. Dining out in this environment was an easy luxury to cut.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE: DRI - option chain) shares are headed higher today after the company reported Q3 earnings yesterday after the close of 78 cents per share, which beat estimates of only 68 cents. Also, DRI raised its outlook for 2009 earnings as well.

The markets are taking this news today as some kind of a sign that the consumer is sticking with the casual dining atmosphere and rewarding DRI stock accordingly. 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 DRI.

DRI opened this morning at $33.52. So far today the stock has hit a low of $33.12 and a high of $35.64. As of 11:20, DRI is trading at $34.94, up 5.04 (16.9%). The chart for DRI looks neutral and S&P gives DRI a 3 STARS (out of 5) hold ranking.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE: DRI) operates about 1,700 casual dining restaurants in the United States and Canada. Its Red Lobster (seafood), Olive Garden (Italian cuisine), LongHorn Steakhouse (steak), Bahama Breeze (Caribbean items) and Capital Grille (steak) chains cater to families, with mid-priced menu items and generally suburban locations. A small group of Seasons 52 restaurants feature a casual grill and wine bar concept. Brinker International (NYSE: EAT) and Chipotle Mexican Grill (NYSE: CMG) are competitors.

The company pleased investors last week, when it reported fiscal Q3 EPS of 85 cents and revenues of $1.81 billion. Analysts had been looking for 82 cents and $1.80 billion. Management also guided FY08 EPS to about $2.71-$2.76 ($2.72 consensus) and FY08 revenues to about $6.63-$6.68 billion ($6.64B consensus). Raymond James subsequently upgraded the shares to "strong buy".

Darden Restaurants (NYSE: DRI) operates about 1,700 casual dining restaurants in the United States and Canada. Its Red Lobster (seafood), Olive Garden (Italian cuisine), LongHorn Steakhouse (steak), Bahama Breeze (Caribbean items) and Capital Grille (steak) chains cater to families, with mid-priced menu items and generally suburban locations. A small group of Seasons 52 restaurants feature a casual grill and wine bar concept. Brinker International (NYSE: EAT) and Chipotle Mexican Grill (NYSE: CMG) are competitors.

The company pleased investors last week, when it guided fiscal Q3 EPS to 83-85 cents. Analysts had been looking for 77 cents. Management also said it expected Y08 EPS of about $2.71-$2.76 ($2.66 consensus).

Darden Restaurants Inc. (NYSE: DRI) stock has fallen sharply this morning after Tuesday afternoon's announcement that net income for the second quarter fell to $43.5 million, or 30 cents a share, down from $61.7 million, or 41 cents, earned a year ago. The restaurant operator blamed the acquisition of RARE Hospitality and a "difficult consumer environment" for the drop. Analysts had expected DRI to earn 50 cents a share on revenue of $1.54 billion. If you think this stock won't be rising too far in the coming months, then it could be a good time to look at a bearish hedged play on DRI.

After hitting a one-year high of $47.60 in June, the stock hit a one-year low of $35.31 yesterday, which it has broken by a good measure this morning. Today, DRI opened at $31.72. So far today the stock has hit a low of $29.80 and a high of $31.85. As of 10:50, DRI is trading at $30.21, down 6.13 (-16.9%). The chart for DRI looks bearish and steady, while S&P gives the stock a positive 4 STARS (out of 5) buy rating.

For a bearish hedged play on this stock, I would consider a July bear-call credit spread above the $40 range. A bear-call credit spread is an options position that combines the purchase and sale of call options to hedge risk in case the stock doesn't do what you think but still leverage nice returns. For this particular trade, we will make a 6.3% return in 7 months as long as DRI is below $40 at July expiration. Darden would have to rise by more than 32% before we would start to lose money.

An Orlando outfit became the number one casual dining operator in North America by offering multiple dining experiences to the critical family crowd.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE: DRI) operates more than 1,300 casual dining restaurants in the United States and Canada. Its Red Lobster (seafood), Olive Garden (Italian cuisine) and Bahama Breeze (Caribbean items) chains cater to families, with mid-priced menu items and suburban locations. A small group of Seasons 52 restaurants feature a casual grill and wine bar concept. Brinker International (NYSE: EAT) and Chipotle Mexican Grill (NYSE: CMG) are competitors.

The company pleased investors last month, when it reported fiscal Q1 EPS of 73 cents and revenues of $1.47 billion. Analysts had been expecting 70 cents and $1.45 billion. Management also guided FY08 revenues to about $6.25-6.31 billion, versus consensus of $6.08 billion. The company confirmed that it plans to buy back $125-175 million of its common stock in FY08.

Darden Restaurants Inc (NYSE: DRI), the casual dining restaurant chain that owns and operates the Red Lobster, Olive Garden, Bahama Breeze, Smokey Bones Barbeque & Grill, and Seasons 52 restaurant concepts, reported disappointing earnings last night after market close -- missing the consensus on both EPS and revenues.

As analysts expected the company to trade mostly in-line with their expectations, the terrible earnings report came as a negative surprise coming from the stock that had been upgraded nine times over the course of the past year. The company traded down 3.39% in pre-market trading, after trading near lifetime highs prior to the release.

Several analysts feel that Darden's reported $55.1 million loss for Q4 is reflective of a charge-off for selling 65 Smokey Bones restaurants over the past quarter; the company put another 73 Smokey Bones' restaurants up for sale in the quarter.

Following the decision to sell many of the Smokey Bones restaurants, CEO Clarence Otis said that the company would remain optimistic about making a "major acquisition." Let's face it, with their earnings, right now they need it.