The Trial Balance is CFO’s weekly preview of stories, stats, and events to help you prepare.
Part 1: FloQast CFO Q&A, Lamborghini CFO’s Morning Routine
Reporter Adam Zaki will publish a Q&A with FloQast CFO Razzak Jallow. Zaki and Jallow discuss the value of networking, how to approach making important business decisions, developing employee autonomy, and how to attract younger people into corporate finance and accounting. (2/1)
The CFO team will also publish an edition of the 6 a.m. CFO series with Lamborghini CFO Paolo Poma. The supercar manufacturer's finance chief shares how he starts his 12-hour workday with a run, a call with his daughter, and emails with bullet points. (2/1)
Part 2: This Week
“At this stage of the fourth quarter earnings season, the overall performance of the S&P 500 continues to be subpar,” according to FactSet’s January 26 earnings update. But that may change this week as five of the “Magnificent Seven” tech stocks are due to report their Q4 financials: Apple, Microsoft, Google parent Alphabet, Amazon, and Meta Platforms. FactSet estimates that excluding Tesla (which already reported), the Magnificent Seven will report year-over-year earnings growth of nearly 54% in the aggregate. The S&P 500 as of Friday was up 2.5% for the year.
However, fears of an escalation in conflict in the Middle East could distract investors this week after three U.S. soldiers were killed and more than 30 wounded in northeast Jordan by a drone strike linked to Iran. President Biden may face pressure to retaliate directly.
The Federal Reserve Open Market Committee meets on the final two days of January, with Chair Jerome Powell’s press conference at 2 pm on Wednesday. Investors “will be looking for clarification about the wide gap between the much bigger expectations for rate cuts from the market and the smaller ones the panel projects,” according to Barron’s. “Risks we veer off the runway into resurgent inflation or recession are real but balanced and not unusually high,” Harvard economist Jason Furman (@jasonfurman) posted on X after the PCE inflation report. “Fed deserves a lot of credit and should start cutting soon.”
A host of jobs market data is scheduled for this week, including job openings, the employment cost index, and January’s jobs report on nonfarm payrolls, unemployment, and hourly wages. “There's plenty of reason to think job growth could be strong again,” according to Morningstar. “Layoffs were extremely low in January, suggesting employers cut fewer jobs in the month than [usual].”
The Financial Accounting Standards Board holds an open meeting on Wednesday. Topics on the agenda include feedback on the disaggregation of income statement expenses project and accounting for environmental credit programs. The board meeting livestream is available here.
The Internal Revenue Service begins accepting tax returns today, although the tax extenders bill is still being debated in Congress.
This week may see the second billion-dollar U.S. IPO, with Finnish sports gear company Amer Sports expected to raise $1.7 billion at an $8.3 billion market cap. Last week, BrightSpring Health Services priced its IPO below range and closed down 15% on its first trading day. However, bladder cancer biotech CG Oncology outperformed, upsizing its offering twice and soaring more than 90% on its first day. It raised $380 million.
Other earnings this week: Cleveland-Cliffs, Whirlpool, Starbucks, Electronic Arts, AMD, Starbucks, Pfizer, Exxon Mobil, Shell, Boeing, Juniper Networks, Stryker, Mondelez International, Chubb, Fortune Brands Innovations, Robert Half International, Qualcomm, Corteva, AFLAC, Meritage Homes, Metlife, Hanover Insurance, Axis Capital, UGI, C.H. Robinson, U.S. Steel, Clorox, Skechers, Deckers Brands, Eastman Chemical, NOV, Reinsurance Group of America, Hartford Financial Services, LPL Financial Holdings, SoFi Technologies, and United Parcel Service. — Vincent Ryan
Part 3: A Proactive Approach to Debt Restructuring
The past year has proven that the business world is inherently volatile. For middle-market companies, navigating downturns can be particularly challenging. Britt Terrell, managing director and head of capital markets at Palm Tree, helps arm CFOs with the guidance needed to get ahead of the game and avoid reactionary decision-making. (1/30)