Intuit, Nordstrom Earnings on Tap
Will Intuit's premium services gain traction? Plus, full-priced selling should help Nordstrom's bottom line.
Market Update
Financial-solutions software-provider Intuit (INTU) is slated to report earnings after the bell Thursday. A consensus of analyst estimates forecasts fourth-quarter EPS of $0.26, as opposed to $0.35 in the year-ago quarter.
Analysts will be looking for growth in key products such as small-business accounting software QuickBooks, personal-finance software Quicken, and tax-helper TurboTax, even as other free or low-cost rivals spring up. The ratio of subscribers signing up for premium services after trying out the free services offered by the firm will also be watched.
Morningstar analyst Rafael Garcia thinks the company's products are sticky--users that have signed up for Intuit products would hesitate to switch, as it takes some effort to learn the new product's operations, helping to bolster the firm's economic moat.
Success in Intuit's international-market forays has been limited, and analysts will be listening in for progress on that front.
At its current market price around $50 per share, the firm's stock looks pricey compared with Garcia's $37 fair value estimate.
Also declaring results after the market close is Nordstrom (JWN). Wall Street expects the firm to report EPS of $1, higher than the $0.78 it posted in the same quarter last year.
Nordstrom's top-line is expected to get a boost, as consumer spending revives slowly (the holiday season will also provide a kick), while margins may firm up thanks to more full-priced selling and sound inventory management in the past quarter.