Earnings previews: Hewlett-Packard (HPQ) and Whole Foods (WFMI)

Filed under: Earnings reports, Forecasts, Hewlett-Packard (HPQ), Whole Foods Market (WFMI)Among companies scheduled to report earnings next week are Hewlett-Packard Co. (NYSE: HPQ) and Whole Foods Market (NASDAQ: WFMI). Here is a quick look at each of them. HP has beat earnings expectations in every quarter since Q4 2004. When it reported third quarter results back in August, earnings were 71 cents per share, easily beating the consensus estimate of analysts surveyed by Thomson Financial, as well as the actual 52 cents per share in the same period of 2006. For the fourth quarter, analysts expect 82 cents per share, or $2.88 for the full year. HP's 15.7% earnings per share growth forecast for the next year is better than the S&P 500, but nowhere near the computer hardware industry