Stocks: Investors prep for quarter end

July 15, 2011: 12:41 PM ET
U.S. stock market

Stocks have fallen sharply since the second quarter began on April 1, following multiple signs that the U.S. economy appears to be slowing. Click the chart for more market data.

NEW YORK (CNNMoney) -- Wary investors can expect a slew of economic data and the end of the second quarter this week.

Some of the economic reports include the Institute for Supply Management's manufacturing survey on Friday, as well as two on U.S. consumers.

The ISM manufacturing survey will be closely watched as it's often considered the second most important piece of economic data investors get on a monthly basis, second only to the Labor Department's monthly jobs report.

"ISM is a really good measure of the heartbeat of the manufacturing sector, and will give us a good indicator whether the recent de-acceleration in the economy is going to continue," said Burt White, chief investment officer with LPL Financial.

Investors also face the end of the second quarter, which could have an influence on trading as portfolio managers re-adjust their holdings ahead of the quarter end.

It has been a difficult three months for Wall Street. The Dow has fallen 3% since March 3, while the broader market S&P 500 index is down 4.3%.

Oracle's hardware slump

Investors are also turning their attentions back to corporate earnings, as the quarter ends, said White. So far, quarterly results from Corporate America have been mixed, with companies such as FedEx posting strong results, but other influential companies like Oracle disappointing.

"Analysts still have high expectations for this quarter for Corporate America, despite the negative economic data the past several weeks," said White.

The Dow and the S&P 500 closed lower last week, marking the seventh week out of eight that those indexes have tracked lower. Stocks fell on Friday mostly because of the disappointing results out of Oracle and Micron Technology.

Greece is also expected to remain in the forefront of investors' minds, particularly after news late last week after the country came to an agreement with the European Union and International Monetary Fund, market observers said.

"There remains a lot of worry about Greece and any developments could change the market's direction quickly," said Rob Lutts, chief investment officer of Cabot Money Management.

On the Docket:

New economic stimulus: lower oil prices

Monday -- The Commerce Department will release personal income and spending data for May at 8:30 a.m. ET. Economists surveyed by Briefing.com are looking for personal incomes to rise 0.3% while spending is expected to remain flat.

Athletic apparel giant Nike (NKE, Fortune 500) is scheduled to report its earnings after the closing bell.

Tuesday -- Investors will get the S&P Case-Shiller home price index for April at 9 a.m. ET on Tuesday, which is considered one of the official gauges on the housing market. The index is forecasted to fall 3.9% versus the 3.6% it dropped in March, according to Briefing.com.

The Conference Board's consumer confidence survey is also out Tuesday at 10 a.m. ET. Economists are looking for consumer confidence to edge lower to a reading of 60.3 compared with the reading of 60.8 reported for May.

Wednesday -- The National Association of Realtors will report its May pending home sales data at 10 a.m. ET. Economists forecast pending home sales rose 2%in May after April's big 11.6% decline.

Investors will get quarterly results from , General Mills (GIS, Fortune 500), KB Home (KBH) and Monsanto (MON, Fortune 500).

Thursday -- The Labor Department will issue its weekly jobless claims data at 8:30 a.m. ET, with economists looking for weekly claims to fall to 42,000.

Also out on Thursday is the Chicago purchasing managers' index at 9:45 a.m. ET, which is expected to slip to 53.5.

Apollo Group (APOL, Fortune 500), the parent company of the University of Phoenix, reports after the closing bell on Thursday. Other names reporting include Constellation Brand (STZ) and dining chain owner Darden Restaurants (DRI, Fortune 500).

Friday -- The ISM's manufacturing index comes out at 10 a.m. ET, with economists looking for a reading of 51.1 versus May's reading of 53.5..

Investors will also get May construction spending figures from the Commerce Department as well as the final read on University of Michigan's May consumer sentiment survey.

The major auto makers such as General Motors (GM, Fortune 500), Toyota (TM), and Ford (F, Fortune 500) are scheduled to report their May sales figures starting at around 11 a.m. ET. To top of page

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