Green Mountain Coffee Roasters (GMCR) recently reported Q2 2013 earnings results which saw short interest take a severe beating. The company beat expectations handily on the bottom line although the top line seemingly missed analysts' expectations. But investors weren't focused on revenues/sales, which continue to show strong signs of slowing growth. Investors and analysts alike were more focused on the bottom line beat and an announcement that further cemented Green Mountain's partnership with Starbucks (SBUX).

On the Conference Call, Green Mountain's CEO Brian Kelley fielded questions from analysts related to the newly signed deal between the two companies. As the CEO of GMCR remained conservative with regard to detailing the new partnership, he did point to this venture as opening up new doors internationally for GMCR. Additionally, he noted the partnership would further advance Green Mountain's North American dominance through greater distribution in the region as well as greater product

In this article, we will shares some insights and key takeaways from SodaStream's (SODA) latest meeting which included members of the financial and investment community. Shares of SodaStream have risen by nearly 15% since reporting Q1 2013 earnings earlier this month. On May 14th shares rose by nearly 12% after the company held its first ever Analyst/Investor Day on May 13, 2013. There was a great deal of speculation surrounding the event with investors looking forward to greater clarity and insight into the company's global growth plan, global partnerships and the direction the company is heading.

SodaStream is currently available in 45 countries across the globe and the company is focused on driving revenues in existing markets while seeding new markets such as India, Mexico and Poland. While China remains an expansionary objective for the company, SodaStream's CEO Daniel Birnbaum outlined that it is currently not a main focus as

SodaStream International LTD. (SODA) is scheduled to report Q1 2013 Earnings results on May 8, 2013. The company has managed to surpass analysts' estimates in every quarterly report since its IPO in 2010. After an extremely strong performance in FY12, 4 out 11 analysts covering SodaStream ramped up Q1 2013 estimates this past February. Expectations are high for SODA after a stronger than expected Q4 2012 and its first Super Bowl commercial appearance. With that said, let's take a look at analysts' expectations for the 1st quarter and the full year as provided by Capital IQ.

Monster Beverage Corp. (MNST) is set to report Q1 2013 earnings results on May 8th alongside Green Mountain Coffee Roasters (GMCR) after the closing bell. In the company's most recent earnings release, MNST failed to meet analysts' expectations for the second sequential quarter. Let's take a look at the firm's most recent results before moving forward:

• Net sales of $471.5 million, up 15% vs. a year ago
• Diluted earnings per share of $0.39 a share vs. $.35 last year
• Gross sales in October 2011 grew 31.1% YOY
• Gross sales outside of the U.S. were $115.2 million vs. $88.9 million a year ago
• Gross profit margin was 51.7% in the quarter vs. 52.3% a year ago
• Effective tax rate was 39.1% in the quarter vs. 38.3 a year ago
• Inventories were $203.1 million vs. $155.6 million a year ago

Now let us look at both analysts' expectations for Q1 2013.

One should never base an investment on a single reporting metric, but when it comes to gross margins, this tends to tell a big picture story that can signal a longer term trend. In this article, we will compare the gross margins of two company's respective "razor/razor" blade business models to see which one settles out with the more sound investment thesis. As noted directly, although this one metric should not be the only focus for an investment thesis, for the purposes of this article, it will be the main focus. Our aim is to develop an understanding of gross margin contribution for Green Mountain Coffee Roasters (GMCR) and SodaStream International (SODA).

Both GMCR and SODA employ the same business model which is known as the razor/razor blade business model. The business model's concept is very simple and very effective. Essentially, the company sells a razor (coffee maker or soda

Shares of Starbucks (SBUX) were down after hours as investors were likely in the mood to take profits as the stock steadily climbed its way higher leading into the earnings release and through much of the quarter. For the quarter ended March 31, Starbucks said profit rose 26% to $390.4 million, or 51 cents a share. Analysts had expected 48 cents. Revenue rose 11% to $3.6 billion, while same-store sales grew 6%. Operating margins climbed to 15.3% from 13.5%. For its September 2013 fiscal year, Starbucks said it would earn between $2.12 and $2.18 a share. Its old forecast was $2.06 to $2.15 a share. However, Starbucks maintained its outlook for margin improvement, revenue and same-store sales growth.

The Americas segment revenue grew 10%, operating income grew 22% to $550 million. The company delivered strong flow through on sales growth with margins in the Americas growing by 220 basis

The markets seem to keep shrugging off any semblance of bad news. The major averages have seemingly resumed an upward trend on the heels of better than anticipated, albeit low-bar expectations, earnings results. Shares of Netflix (NFLX) surged 23% Tuesday. The company's target price was raised by several firms on Tuesday in the wake of its earnings beat late Monday. The company swung to a profit in the first quarter on the popularity of the original series "House of Cards," which helped subscriber figures.

Today, investors will have their first opportunity to react to the latest earnings results out from Apple Inc. (AAPL). Apple Inc. reported an 18% drop in earnings for its second fiscal quarter on Tuesday afternoon. For the period ended March 30, Apple reported net income of $9.5 billion, or $10.09 per share, compared to net income of $11.6 billion, or $12.30 per share, for

After a dismal week for Wall Street last week with a mixed bag of earnings from a host of companies and the tragedy of the Boston Marathon bombings, investors and traders alike are looking for a less volatile week ahead. About 170 S&P 500 and 10 Dow companies report earnings in the week ahead, and they include everything from tech icon Apple (AAPL) to industrial names like Caterpillar (CAT) and energy companies like Exxon (XOM). As of Friday, a fifth of the S&P 500 had reported, and two-thirds had better-than-expected earnings. But an unusually high amount, 57%, missed their top-line revenue estimates, according to Thomson Reuters.

In the light of these respective earnings results, the Dow finished its worst week of the year as it fell 2.1 percent to 14,547, and the S&P 500 lost 2.1 percent to 1,555. The Nasdaq was down 2.7 percent last week. IBM proved to

Home goods retailer Bed Bath & Beyond (BBBY) reported Q4 2012 earnings growth of 14% to $1.68 a share on April 10, and shares climbed on the news. For the full year, the company grew earnings by 12% to $4.56 a share. Net sales for the full year were approximately $10.9 billion, approximately 14.9% higher than in the fiscal full year of 2011. Additionally, the company noted that it benefited by approximately $.05 a share due to the extra week occurring in the 4th quarter. During FY2012, the company, through expansion efforts and acquisition efforts, grew its retail footprint by 16% to 42 million sq. feet. As of Q1 2013, the company now operates a total of 1,474 stores across all of its brand concepts. During FY13, the company has laid out a framework to open 45 new stores.

While many BBBY investors have remained focused on recent acquisitions such

Straight away Captain!! SodaStream's (SODA) business has been firing on all cylinders (no pun intended) since its IPO in 2010. Since releasing Q4 2012 earnings in February, the stock seems to have stalled, although shares rose dramatically on April 11, to a 52-week high before pulling back in a similarly dramatic fashion. The volatile share price action proves to be too much to take for retail investors while the institutional investment community continues to acquire shares equaling greater than 90% of the float currently.

Some of SODA's largest shareholders are Fidelity, Real Property Investment LTD, Tremblant Capital Group, Morgan Stanley (MS), Wells Capital Management, and IDB Holding Corp. LTD. I'm sure these majority shareholders appreciated reading the most recent 20F filing from SodaStream, which was released to shareholders of interest on April 16. Not much changed on a year-over-year basis with regards to SodaStream's Annual filing, but unfortunately shares

In this article, we aim to begin putting some of the pieces together regarding the May 8, 2013 earnings report for Green Mountain Coffee Roasters (GMCR). While this article will not serve investors as providing a full quarterly preview, it will begin to add up some of the sum of the parts regarding GMCR's business during Q2 2013 as we look at analysts' estimates and price targets as well as seasonality, pricing and daily coffee consumption rates.

First let's take a look at the average analysts' expectations for the upcoming quarterly release:

Target Corporation (TGT) is undergoing a new stage of expansion as it seeks opportunities internationally. The company has aligned an effort to open some 124 stores in Canada this year; the first three stores opened in early March. Based on early channel check reports, sales are going better than expected in the region. Some sources cite that the biggest obstacle the company is facing in early stages of retail operations is getting general merchandise back in-stock quickly enough.

In this article, I plan to outline some of the headwinds the company is and will likely continue to face in 2013, assuming the trends in the economy stay true to form. Within this article, from time to time I will denote some factual economic statistics which relate to the economy and how that juxtaposition could possibly underpin earnings growth for Target Corporation.

With that said, let's kick-off this article with the

With the U.S. major indices reaching all-time highs recently for the Dow Industrials and the S&P 500, investors are wondering whether or not the best days of 2013 are behind them or if the market has further to run. Unfortunately, the economic data released over the last several months or so hasn't been a real good indicator of market performance either, furthering the indecisiveness of market participants. One thing, however, is for certain; Friday's snap back from the open of trading to the close of trading certainly solidifies the belief that investors aren't willing to fight the Federal Reserve's Quantitative Easing policy.

On Friday April 5th 2013, the Dow Industrials opened roughly 170 points to the downside and by the end of trading the Dow was only down by roughly 40 points. This 130 point swing came on the heels of some rather poor economic and employment releases by the

It's been nearly a month since the International Home and Housewares Show, where consumer goods companies show off their latest and greatest products, with hopes of retail buyers making big purchases. SodaStream (SODA) has been a mainstay at the event for 6 years now and was once again one of the highlight exhibits at the Show. As the 1st Quarter comes to an end and retailers are blowing through Easter and Passover products, SodaStream investors settle-in for the moment as the company won't be releasing earnings until May. However, SODA investors would be prudent by minding Green Mountain Coffee Roasters (GMCR) earnings which will be released just ahead of SodaStream's earnings release. If I've said it once I've said it 13 times, "If GMCR beats and the stock heads higher, shares of SODA will head higher, but if GMCR's stock falters and for whatever reason, on that particular day so

Back on February 27, 2013, I wrote an article titled "Green Mountain Coffee (GMCR), SodaStream (SODA) Enjoy Their P/E." The article outlined several key stochastic measures, which prove how the two companies' price to earnings multiples always seem to gravitate back together, with a 20 P/E being the ideal earnings multiple for the two stocks as outlined by the companies' respective plethora of analysts. Also within the article, I describe and named some 47 different institutions and hedge funds that own both stocks and at various times throughout the year. The key takeaway from the article was recognizing that, indeed, the two stocks do trade together and, indeed, with this knowledge an investor could benefit greatly.

What usually happens with shares of GMCR and SODA is that one stock's multiple tends to extend past the other stock's multiple, thus increasing the share price ahead of the other

Shares of Lululemon (LULU) actually rose today in spite of lowered expectations for FY13. Most recently, shares of LULU have come under pressure due to a huge recall by the company for its Yoga-Luon pants due to concerns over sheer material that when worn, are transparent to some degree. The episode, the second quality issue disclosed in less than a year, could undermine Lululemon's reputation, said analysts who noted that competition from lower-priced brands is heating up. Last July, the company acknowledged problems with dye-bleeding in some of its apparel. "Those are two black eyes for a brand that is supposed to stand for quality in the marketplace," said Brian Sozzi, chief equities analyst at NBG Productions. "It's a window of opportunity for Lululemon's competitors."

See-through pants aside, let's dive into the quarterly recap, so investors have a clear understanding of where the company is heading and what they

With economic data seemingly improving as of late, the Federal Reserve Open Market Committee is set to debate this week the Fed's current asset purchase program which began in 2008. The FOMC is widely expected to keep interests rates at 0%. Additionally, the Fed is expected to continue its $85 billion in asset purchases such as U.S. Treasuries and mortgage debt.

As economic conditions accelerate to the upside, some economists and market strategists are of the opinion that the Fed may begin to signal a shift in language, indicating a possible tapering off of Fed stimulus at some time during the year. This opinion is shared by only a limited number of market participants as the recent sequester has certainly thrown the idea of near-term changes to the Fed's asset purchase policy out the window. Long-term effects of the sequester can't be adequately measured presently and will

Who isn't bearish on Skullcandy (SKUL) at this point? After the company reported a miss on Q4 2012 earnings and a slight beat on Q1 2013 earnings, shares of Skullcandy fell more than 20% in the after hours trading session. The steep decline came on the heels of the company's guidance for Q1 2013 which assumes a loss of $.25 a share for the quarter. Now, if you are one of those die hard SKUL investors who think that maybe the company is low-balling expectations; I'd take on a second perspective that views the quarter as nearly over when the company offered this guidance to investors on March 7, 2013. I'm pretty sure they have a good idea of what the numbers look like at this point, so you may not want to fool yourself into thinking management is under promising and might over deliver. Frankly speaking, that hasn't

Staging a turnaround is difficult, and it requires a lot of hard work - especially when the entity going through that process is not an individual, but a $20 billion company such as Yahoo! (YHOO) Their path officially started, as far as investors are concerned, on July 16th, when Marissa Mayer took the helm as CEO of the company. In my last article, I discussed how Mayer's plans are structured, what she must do to succeed, and what her actions thus far have meant for shareholders. Mayer indeed has laid down a great plan, but, as the saying goes, the best laid plans of mice and men often go awry. As part of Capital Ladder Advisory Group's ongoing commitment to provide the best possible research and analysis on the company, it's important to check continually and make sure that Mayer and the rest of the Yahoo! team are executing