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Although many of the largest tech companies have already reported quarterly numbers, there are still a few bellwethers that have yet to check in with results. In today’s article, we take a look at what’s expected for the world’s largest networking equipment maker, a leading semiconductor equipment manufacturer, and two popular on-line service providers. So far, the market has shrugged off the mostly better-than-expected reports from the tech sector as investors have chalked up the upside results to analysts serving up lay-ups for these companies. However, with the stock market correcting over the prior two weeks, stocks may now actually start to reap some rewards from good reports.

CSCO The Most Important Tech Name Yet To Report

On Feb. 3, after the market closes, networking giant Cisco Systems (Nasdaq: CSCO) will report its 2Q10 results. The Street is expecting it to report EPS of $0.35 on revenue of $9.4 billion. An in-line quarter would equate to year-over-year growth of 9% and 4%, respectively. Generally speaking, sentiment for CSCO has been positive heading into its report. Underlying trends such as cloud computing and virtualization are factors that should drive sales higher. Earnings reports from companies such as INTC (Nasdaq: INTC), Microsoft (Nasdaq: MSFT), and IBM (NYSE: IBM) have confirmed that enterprise spending has improved over last year. Additionally, ordering patterns for switching devices are believed to be strong, which bodes well for April quarter guidance. On the conference call (4:30 ET), CEO Chambers will also likely highlight its growth opportunities in “emerging technologies” – namely the digitization/mobilization on the internet, and electrical power grid upgrades. Shares of CSCO have sold off sharply lately, on general market weakness, and are currently sitting at support around the $22.50 level. For more in-depth coverage on its technical attributes, please review our free trading report by clicking here.

Intel’s Strong Results Bode Well for NVLS

Back on Jan. 14, INTC reported quarterly results that were well ahead of consensus estimates. It also guided for capex to be ~$4.8 billion, which suggests a recovery scenario for semiconductor equipment makers such as Novellus (Nasdaq: NVLS). A few days later, Taiwan Semi (NYSE: TSM) issued upside guidance for 1Q10 – a company that NVLS has gained some traction at. The company was also in the news last week when a sell-side firm made it a “Top Pick”, citing a new, major design win. Due to these factors, expectations are fairly high for the company when it reports on Feb. 3. Analysts are expecting it to report earnings of $0.33/share on sales of $237.1 million. However, tempering the enthusiasm somewhat is that its peer, KLA-Tencor (Nasdaq: KLAC), issued a rather average quarter on Jan. 28 in which it beat EPS by a mere penny with sales in-line. For a comprehensive look at NVLS on a technical basis, please click here.

Persistent Job Losses Derailing MWW; TZOO Too Erratic

Two widely used internet-based service companies will report earnings on Feb. 3. The Street anticipates on-line employment provider Monster Worldwide (NYSE: MWW) to report a loss per share of $0.01 on revenue of $212.3, while projecting EPS of $0.06 and sales of $24 million for Travelzoo (Nasdaq: TZOO). Quite obviously, the massive layoffs and hiring freezes implemented by corporations has devastated MWWs financial performance. Despite sales plummeting in the mid-30% range over the past three quarters, it has done a good job curtailing costs as it has remained modestly profitable. Until this recent drop-off, the stock had been surprising strong (perhaps in anticipation of an improving jobs market), with shares going from $15 at the end of November to $19 in early January. TZOO, on the other hand, sold-off sharply during this same time frame, dropping from about $14 to $10.50. Its financial results have been erratic -- fluctuating from losses to profits, beating then missing. If there is one thing investors hate, it would be uncertainty, and that’s what TZOO has been providing.

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