Earnings Season! Here’s Your Game Plan for This Week

The first full week of third-quarter earnings reports kicks off on Monday, and, as always, Cramer recommends listening to what the reporting companies say rather than trying to trade the numbers.

“This is the time of year when we can lose the most money imaginable because we acted too quickly. That’s why I tell you to simply wait,” Cramer said. “Try to learn from them so you can profit later on when the sound and the fury of reporting season has passed.”

Things get started Tuesday afternoon with Cramer’s fave railroad CSX . The Jacksonville, Fla.-based company should provide a “terrific pulse on everything that ships,” Cramer said, including wood, steel and autos. Being as CSX also ships coal to China for steel production, Cramer is hoping to hear that Chinese demand remains strong.

Technology giant Intel also reports quarterly earnings Tuesday afternoon. Cramer wants to hear from Intel executives that its price cuts are working. If so, he would consider buying INTC.

JPMorgan Chase takes the stage on Wednesday. Cramer expects an update on the decline in loan losses and a possible timeframe for reinstating its dividend. He’s also hoping for clarity on the “endless mortgage scandals” and how a nationwide foreclosure moratorium would affect the financial institution.

After the closing bell on Thursday, Cramer will be listening closely to Google’s announcement. This stock has moved up slowly without much chatter thanks to strong sales of its Android smartphone platform. With the Droid smartphone gaining market share, Cramer is interested to know how they plan to profit from it. To him, an advertising model is unappealing.

General Electric will bring the week to a close on Friday. From aerospace to health care, the Fairfield, Conn.-based conglomerate is a good read on many industries. If health-care sales are strong, Cramer recommends researching Hologic and Varian Medical Systems , being as they’re similar to GE’s health-care division.

When this story published, Cramer’s charitable trust owned Intel and JPMorgan Chase.

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