Earnings calls are events that most investors do not bother listening to. However, if you are invested in individual stocks, I believe you should listen to these presentations. Earnings calls provide a great summary of what a company has experienced in the most recent quarter and what management expects moving forward. In this article, I will discuss two companies that Canadian investors should be watching closely this week.
This industry could skyrocket soon
At the time of this writing, Tuesday evening, the results of the American presidential election have not been finalized. With that being said, if Joe Biden were to pull out the victory, renewable energy companies could see a dramatic boost in value. Joe Biden’s team has mentioned previously that it intends on investing $400 billion over 10 years into clean energy. That would be amazing news for companies like Brookfield Renewable Partners (TSX:BEP.UN)(NYSE:BEP).
Brookfield Renewable is a global leader in the renewable energy industry. Its portfolio contains more than 19,000 MW of generating capacity. The company’s assets can be found in North and South America, Europe, India, and China.
This company’s earnings call is scheduled for November 4, just before market open. Its most recent earnings call was very impressive. The company finalized its acquisition of TerraForm Power and saw a 19% increase in funds from operation over the prior year.
While it is not recommended that investors make decisions based on earnings calls, there is a slight chance that if Brookfield fails to impress and Biden wins the election, that its stock could rise regardless.
One of Canada’s favourite growth stocks
The second company that investors should be watching is Lightspeed (TSX:LSPD)(NYSE:LSPD). Lightspeed is a company that needs no introduction. It was one of the most popular stocks in the country during the market recovery in March and April. Investors that managed to catch the bottom saw shares gain more than 300%.
Lightspeed is a company that provides small- and medium-sized businesses with payments software and e-commerce-enabling technology. The company operates in many different industries including retail, restaurants, and golf courses. Currently, Lightspeed has customers in more than 100 countries around the world.
The company’s earnings call is scheduled for Thursday, November 5, at 7:30am. This call should be very interesting, as analysts will expect the company to post strong numbers due to businesses opening up again. Earlier this year, Lightspeed was able to impress analysts by introducing incentives that helped keep its customer base active during the COVID-19 shutdowns.
Growth stocks have been hit hard in the past few weeks, as uncertainty crept up into the market due to rising COVID-19 cases and the anticipation of the presidential election. Over the last month, Lightspeed stock saw a decline of more than 15%. If the company is able to post solid numbers this week, expect its stock to rebound nicely.
Foolish takeaway
We are currently in the middle of earnings season. Stocks can be extremely volatile at this time, as analysts overreact to financial performances over the previous quarter. Brookfield Renewable Partners and Lightspeed are two very popular Canadian companies that have earnings calls scheduled for this week. Investors interested in building, or following, their positions in these companies should keep an eye on these two events.
