Lowe's Companies (LOW) stock: what's the sentiment?

Investors are optimistic about Lowe's earnings since Walmart and Home Depot reported positive results most recently. This will be the first earnings report under the new CEO Marvin Ellison, who was formerly an executive at Home Depot. However, Lowe's performance is trailing the retail ETF XRT: it is up 6 percent vs. XRT 's 14 percent gain.

The key number to watch in the earnings is comparable-store sales, and all signs point to a positive uptick for this key metric. Home Depot saw its growth rate double between the first and second quarter as customers made their spring purchases a bit later than usual. Lowe's executives suggested in late May that a similar trend may be applicable to the company, so analysts are expecting a big boost here.