- Fed rate cut, FOMC dot-plot, Powell news conference, and labor market data will be in focus this week.
- Broadcom is well-positioned to deliver earnings results that significantly exceed consensus estimates while providing optimistic guidance.
- Lululemon is expected to deliver mixed-to-weak results, reflecting slowing U.S. demand and macroeconomic pressures.
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Wall Street’s main indexes ended mostly higher on Friday, with the S&P 500 securing its fourth straight winning day as traders digested inflation data that could provide further incentive for the Federal Reserve to cut interest rates next week.
Source: Investing.com
For the week, the S&P benchmark 500 gained 0.3%, the tech-heavy rose 0.9%, and the 30-stock added 0.5%. The small-cap climbed 0.8%.
The blockbuster week ahead is expected to be a busy one filled with several market-moving events, including a key Fed policy meeting. The U.S. central bank is widely expected to lower interest rates by 25 basis points on Wednesday. Along with its policy update, the FOMC will release new dot-plot projections for interest rates, unemployment and inflation for 2026. Post-meeting comments by Fed Chair Jerome Powell, whose term ends in May, could also move markets.
Source: Investing.com
There will also be some noteworthy labor data due in the week ahead. The JOLTS Job Openings Survey drops on Tuesday, while the latest weekly jobless claims numbers are set for Thursday.
And while the earnings season is all but over, a few notable companies will report in the coming week. These include AI plays and Oracle, as well as retailers Costco Wholesale, GameStop, and .
Regardless of which direction the market goes, below I highlight one stock likely to be in demand and another which could see fresh downside. Remember though, my timeframe is just for the week ahead, Monday, December 8 – Friday, Dec. 12.
Stock To Buy: Broadcom
Broadcom, a key player in the AI semiconductor space, emerges as the compelling buy opportunity, with multiple growth drivers converging to support what is expected to be a robust earnings report and strong guidance.
The company’s fiscal Q4 update is scheduled to come out on Thursday at 4:15PM ET. Market participants expect a sizable swing in AVGO shares following the print, with options markets pricing in a potential $30 move, or roughly +/-8%, in either direction post-earnings.
Analysts have shown optimism through multiple upward revisions to EPS estimates—27 upward adjustments versus just three downward in recent months—setting the stage for what could be another record quarter. Recent analyst upgrades, including Jefferies’ new $480 price target and Mizuho’s bullish AI revenue projections, add fuel to the fire.
Source: InvestingPro
Broadcom is seen earning $1.87 per share, representing a 31.7% increase from the prior year and marking another quarter of accelerating profitability. Meanwhile, revenue is forecast to jump 24.2% year-over-year to $17.45 billion, fueled by robust AI demand.
The company’s AI chip partnership with Google—highlighted by the recent Gemini 3 launch—has cemented Broadcom’s status as a linchpin in the AI supply chain.
Analysts anticipate upbeat guidance, reinforcing the stock’s leadership in AI and enterprise software. Broadcom’s application-specific integrated circuits and networking switches have become indispensable components for AI training and inference workloads, creating customer dependency that supports premium pricing and long-term contract visibility.
Source: Investing.com
AVGO stock ended Friday’s session at $390.24, just below its record high of $403. Broadcom’s technicals are as bullish as they come. Every major indicator—across all timeframes from minutes to weeks—signals a “strong buy.” The 1-hour chart is especially robust: RSI at 60.2 (bullish but not overbought), MACD positive, and all moving averages (simple and exponential) in buy territory.
InvestingPro’s AI-powered quantitative model rates Broadcom with a ‘GREAT’ Financial Health Score of 3.13, reflecting strong profit and sales growth, high gross margins, and a long-standing record of rising dividends (15 consecutive years).
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Stock to Sell: Lululemon
Lululemon, once a darling of the athleisure market, faces a challenging setup heading into its Q3 fiscal 2025 earnings, with expectations pointing toward a potential miss and subdued forward guidance amid rising competition, tariff impacts, and softening consumer demand.
The yoga wear retailer—known for its $128 leggings and $68 workout tanks—is slated to release its latest financial results at 4:05PM ET on Thursday. With implied volatility pointing to a massive +/-12% stock move post-earnings, the risk of a miss looms large.
Analyst sentiment is overwhelmingly bearish with 22 downward revisions and no upward adjustments in the weeks preceding the report, amid a slowdown in U.S. consumer spending on discretionary items like yoga gear and sportswear.
Source: InvestingPro
Wall Street sees Lululemon reporting adjusted earnings of $2.21 per share, declining 23% from a year earlier. Revenue growth is forecast at only 3.3%, as intensified competition from other activewear brands, like , Adidas, and Alo Yoga, as well as low-cost players, such as Shein and Temu, erodes the company’s once-untouchable market position in the lucrative athleisure segment.
Lululemon’s recent performance metrics suggest fundamental demand weakness rather than temporary market disruption, with same-store sales growth decelerating and customer traffic patterns indicating reduced engagement with the brand.
Management’s recent commentary about promotional activity and inventory clearance suggests margin pressure that could persist into the critical holiday quarter as the company attempts to maintain market share in an increasingly competitive environment.
Source: Investing.com
LULU stock closed at $190.01 on Friday. Despite a recent 1-month rally of roughly 14%, technicals show a split personality: while the 1-hour chart leans bullish, longer-term and monthly signals remain bearish or neutral, highlighting a fragile recovery.
As per InvestingPro research, recent analyst commentary paints a picture of declining momentum: Jeffries reiterated its Underperform rating and cut its price target to $120, warning of shrinking margins and pricing pressures.
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Disclosure: This is not financial advice. Always conduct your own research.
At the time of writing, I am long on the S&P 500, and the Nasdaq 100 via the SPDR® S&P 500 ETF, and the ETF. I am also long on the Technology Select Sector SPDR ETF. I regularly rebalance my portfolio of individual stocks and ETFs based on ongoing risk assessment of both the macroeconomic environment and companies’ financials.
The views discussed in this article are solely the opinion of the author and should not be taken as investment advice.
Follow Jesse Cohen on X/Twitter @JesseCohenInv for more stock market analysis and insight.
