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ZNGA, DUK, CBS Top Thursday's Hot Stocks to Watch By Diane Alter

Hot stocks to watch today: While second-quarter earnings season is quickly winding down, a number of key sector players are still on tap to post results. Scheduled to report earnings today (Thursday) are a media giant, a couple of energy titans, a monster beverage company, and more. The post ZNGA, DUK, CBS Top Thursday's Hot Stocks to Watch appeared first on Money Morning - Only the News You Can Profit From .

Hot stocks to watch today: While second-quarter earnings season is quickly winding down, a number of key sector players are still on tap to post results.

Scheduled to report earnings today (Thursday) are a media giant, a couple of energy titans, a monster beverage company, and more.

10 Hot Stocks to Watch Today

Hot Stocks: ZNGAHot Stocks No. 1: Zynga Inc. (Nasdaq: ZNGA) kicks-off Thursday's hot stocks to watch and reports Q2 numbers after today's closing bell. Expectations are for the game maker to post earnings per share (EPS) of $0.0. As dour as that sounds, it would be an improvement of the $0.04 per share loss in the prior quarter. That figure, however, beat consensus estimates by a penny. Whisper numbers have Zynga posting EPS of $0.02. Heading into the report, Wedbush is upbeat. On Monday, the firm reiterated its "Outperform" rating on the stock with a 12-month price target of $7. Those were welcome words for investors, as shares are down a painful 26% year to date.

Hot Stocks No. 2: Duke Energy Corp. (NYSE: DUK) reports Q2 numbers Thursday morning. Forecasts have the Charlotte, N.C.-headquartered energy giant posting EPS of $0.98. Whisper numbers have DUK reporting EPS of $1.00. The largest electric power holding company in the United States, Duke boasts approximately $115 billion in total assets. Its regulated utility operations serve approximately 7.2 million electric customers located in six states in the Southeast and Midwest. Its commercial power and international energy business segments own and operate diverse power generation assets in North America and Latin America, including a growing portfolio of renewable energy assets in the United States. The median analyst rating on the stock is "Buy" with a $77 price target.

Hot Stocks No. 3: CBS Corp. (NYSE: CBS) is scheduled to report Q2 numbers after today's close. Expectations are for the media conglomerate to post EPS of $0.72, down from $0.76 in the same quarter a year ago. The company experienced a 5% decline in overall revenue in the prior quarter due to the absence of Super Bowl and NCAA games. While CBS is slated to report lower revenue and earnings for Q2, analysts expect the media house to do well in 2014's second half. Increased telecasts of NFL games, as well as growth in ad pricing due to its dominating television viewership, should propel earnings for the remainder of the year.

Hot Stocks No. 4. Monster Beverage Corp. (Nasdaq: MNST) is on tap report Q2 earnings after Thursday's close. Wall Street is looking for the energy beverage behemoth to post EPS of $0.75 on revenue of $694.22 million. Whisper numbers have MNST posting EPS of $0.79. Among recent analyst actions, Goldman Sachs reiterated its "Buy" rating on MNST in a research note on Monday. Morgan Stanley, meanwhile, downgraded shares from "Overweight" to "Equal Weight" in a research note on July 21st, citing valuation.

Hot Stocks No. 5: Consolidated Edison Inc. (NYSE: ED) is set to post Q2 numbers after today's close. One of the nation's largest investor-owned energy companies, with approximately $12 billion in annual revenues and $40 billion in assets, analysts expect ED to report EPS of $0.54, a penny shy of the $0.55 reported in the same quarter a year ago. The stock is a favorite among income seekers thanks to its attractive 4.6% yield.

Hot Stocks to Watch No. 6: Brinker International Inc. (NYSE: EAT) will report fiscal Q4 numbers before the open. Expectations are for the casual dining chain to report EPS of $0.86. Analysts have a mixed opinion on Brinker. Late last month, RBC Capital Markets downgraded the parent company of Chili's and Maggiano's Little Italy restaurant chains based on its belief the company is leveraged to lackluster industry trends. The firm has a "Sector Perform" rating on the stock, down from an earlier "Outperform." In mid-July, JP Morgan raised Brinker to "Overweight" from "Neutral" with a $54 price target.

Hot Stocks to Watch No. 7: Chiquita Brands International Inc. (NYSE: CQB) will report Q2 numbers Thursday morning. Forecasts are for the banana behemoth to post EPS of $0.62. In March, CQB bought Fyffes for $526 million. Based in Ireland, Fyffes distributes fruit all across Europe. The combined company, to be named ChiquitaFyffes, will have about $4.6 billion in annual revenue, shipping about 160 million boxes of bananas annually. The lucrative deal also lets CQB engage in an increasingly popular move called a tax inversion.

Hot Stocks to Watch No. 8: Orbitz Worldwide Inc. (NYSE: OWW) reports Q2 numbers before the open. Expectations are for the online travel company to post EPS of $0.14. The company provided preliminary guidance late last month and said it anticipates 2Q revenues to be approximately $248 million, which exceeds analysts' expectations of $243 million. The company also expects a 20% year-over-year growth in its stayed-room-night metric this quarter. Shares are up 25.49% year to date.

Hot Stocks to Watch No. 9: Cooper Tire & Rubber Co. (NYSE: CTB) will post Q2 numbers before today's open. Consensus forecasts have the tire titan reporting EPS of $0.80. Whisper numbers are much more bullish at EPS of $0.90. Robust auto sales this year are likely to have driven the quarter. Wednesday, CTB announced a quarterly dividend of $0.105 per share on common stock. The Sept. 26 distribution marks the century-old company's 170th consecutive quarterly dividend.

Hot Stocks to Watch No. 10: DeVry Education Group Inc. (NYSE: DVY) reports fiscal Q4 earnings after today's close. Expectations have the for-profit educational services company posting EPS of $0.70. For-profits have recently come under pressure amid concerns of mounting debt and the actual benefit of degrees earned at these institutions when it comes to landing a job. Still, Stifel last week upgraded DV from "Hold" to "Buy" and raised its price target to $48. "Earnings are 'troughing' and could turn positive in 2015 after uninterrupted decline from peak of $4.67 in 2011. Our 2014 estimate is $2.50 and our 2015 estimate is $2.55," the firm said.

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The post ZNGA, DUK, CBS Top Thursday's Hot Stocks to Watch appeared first on Money Morning - Only the News You Can Profit From.

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