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.

U.S. stock futures are higher Wednesday morning as investors await new-home sales data. Crude oil prices surged above $105 a barrel. Futures on the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 27 points to 11,982.00 and S&P 500 index futures rose 3.30 points to 1,291.60. Futures for the Nasdaq 100 rose 1 point to 2,258.25.

Stocks closed lower on Tuesday, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropping 0.15% to 12,018.63, the S&P 500 index falling 0.36% to 1,294 and the Nasdaq 100 index declining 0.31% to 2,684.

Data on February new home sales will be released at 8:30 a.m. ET. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke will deliver a speech at the Independent Community Bankers of America National Convention.

U.S. stock futures are higher Tuesday morning as investors await earnings reports. Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 24 points to 11,987, while futures for the S&P 500 index climbed 2 points to 1,295.10. Futures for the Nasdaq 100 index gained 4.75 points to 2,259.25.

U.S. stocks closed higher on Monday, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average gaining 1.50% to 12,037, the S&P 500 index rising 1.5% to 1,298 and the Nasdaq 100 index climbing 1.83% to 2,692.

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.

"We screened the Investors Business Daily (IBD) and Zacks databases to find companies whose earnings are accelerating and whose earnings estimates are being increased by analysts," says J. Royden Ward.

The editor of the Cabot Benjamin Graham Value Letter continues, "All of the stocks in our list have IBD Composite Ratings of 95 (99 is best) and Zacks Ratings of 1 or 2 (1 is best). These recommendations offer excellent appreciation potential with moderate risk.

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.

Analyst Upgrades

• Citigroup upgraded Endo Pharmaceuticals (ENDP) to buy from hold and raised its price target for shares to $40 from $28 following the company's acquisition of Qualitest. The firm believes the deal makes financial and strategic sense. Shares were also upgraded to outperform from perform at Oppenheimer with a $40 price target following the company's acquisition of Qualitest. The firm views the deal as potentially transformative for Endo.
• Goldman upgraded Carnival (CCL) to buy from neutral, citing low supply growth and cost-cutting measures. The firm also raised its price target to $44 from $36.
• Needham upgraded Jabil Circuit (JBL) to strong buy from buy with a $23 target.
• Siliconware Precision (SPIL), United Microelectronic (UMC) and Advanced Semiconductor (ASX) were upgraded to buy from underperform at BofA/Merrill.
• Check Point (CHKP) was upgraded to overweight from equal weight at Morgan Stanley.
• Raymond James (RJF) was upgraded to buy from neutral at Ticonderoga.

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%).

Analyst Upgrades

• FBR Capital upgraded Noble Corporation (NE) to outperform from market perform as it finds the company's acquisition of Frontier Drilling as smart and strategic. The firm upped its target price for shares to $42 from $36.
• Citigroup upgraded Ameriprise (AMP) to buy from hold, citing potential margin expansion from the Columbia acquisition. The firm maintains a $50 price target for shares.
• Thomas Weisel upgraded Jabil Circuit (JBL) to overweight from market weight, citing valuation and the company's growth prospects. The firm raised its target for shares to $20 from $18.
• Blackrock (BLK) was upgraded to outperform from market perform at Keefe Bruyette.
• Disney (DIS) and News Corp (NWS) were upgraded to buy from neutral at Goldman.
• Portland General Electric (POR) was upgraded to neutral from underperform at BofA/Merrill.

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.