Next Week's Key Stocks to Watch

Zions Bancorp, before Monday's open. Zions (ZION) is the first big regional bank to report, and investors will be watching its comments on its real estate loan portfolio and the health of consumers. The stock fell 6.3% to $21.69 on Friday and is down 28% since peaking on April 23. But it is still up 69% for the year. The estimate is for a loss of 55 cents a share for the quarter, compared with 35 cents a share a year ago.

IBM, after Monday's close. Big Blue has been a model of consistency, beating estimates regularly, growing earnings and pushing guidance higher. The consensus estimate is for earnings of $2.58 a share, up 11% from $2.32 a year ago. Revenue is expected to grow 4% to $24.2 billion.

Goldman Sachs, before Tuesday's open. The trading business will be the key to its results. The analyst consensus estimate is for $2.07, down from $4.93 a year ago. Revenue is projected at $9 billion, down from $13.8 billion a year year ago.

Apple, after Tuesday's close. The results for its fiscal third quarter should be strong, if only because Apple low-balls its guidance. The analyst estimate is for $3.09 a share, up 53% from a year ago. Revenue is projected at $14.7 billion, up 75% from a year ago. Watch the sales numbers for its iPad and iPhone 4.

Wells Fargo, before Wednesday's open. The banking giant, which has one of the nation's largest mortgage businesses, managed its way through the 2008 crash better than most. The consensus estimate is for 48 cents a share in earnings, down from 57 cents a share a year ago. But the consensus has risen from 45 cents three months ago. Watch for its comments on real estate and the cost of the new financial regulation legislation.

Caterpillar, before Thursday's open. The construction-equipment maker gets the bulk of its revenue from outside the United States. So, its view of the global economy -- particularly about China, India and Latin America -- will be important. The consensus estimate is 84 cents a share, up 17% from a year ago. Analysts see revenue jumping 23% to $9.8 billion. The stock is up 12.2% this year.

United Parcel Service, before Thursday's open. The outlooks for UPS (UPS) and FedEx (FDX) are closely watched. The package-shipping companies tend to see economic trends emerging before anyone else. Both have consistently noted strong growth in Asia and elsewhere but only steady business at best in the United States. The consensus estimate is 76 cents a share in earnings, up from 49 cents a share a year ago, with revenue up 10.2% to $11.9 billion.

Microsoft, after Thursday's close. For some time, company officials have said they expect corporate customers to start replacing older computers with new ones using the Windows 7 operating system starting in the third quarter of 2010. Intel (INTC) suggested in its analyst call on Tuesday that the refresh cycle, as it's often called, has started in a big way. Look also for comments about new products, such as tablet devices being developed with Dell (DELL) and others, and a new operating system for mobile phones. The consensus earnings estimate for Microsoft's fiscal fourth quarter is 46 cents, up from 36 cents a year ago, with revenue up 16.5% to $15.3 billion.

Verizon Communications, before Friday's open. Verizon (VZ) is reportedly going to get the Apple iPhone next year; Steve Jobs suggested it Friday in his apology about the iPhone 4's antenna problems. But Verizon's mobile business is doing fairly well selling devices based on Google's Android system. Earnings are projected at 56 cents a share, down from 63 cents a year ago, with revenue up 0.7% to $27 billion.

McDonald's, before Friday's open. Fast-food giant McDonald's (MCD) has offered cheer repeatedly, with decent same-store sales both in the United States and abroad. The stock's been steady -- up 12% on the year. Its $69.94 close on Friday was off just 2.2% from its April 29 peak.