What's in store today...

Just how Mr. Muscle is fighting its way through the household product market will be revealed by Reckitt Benckiser (RB.) on Wednesday.

The company has already sent around consensus expectations to the Street, with like-for-like growth at 3.6% and earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) margins at 26.1%. Additionally, the consensus sales and pre-tax profit expectations stand at £9.4 billion and £2.4 billion respectively.

However, the Daily Telegraph has hinted that Reckitt Benckiser is to forego its quarterly profit reports as investors worry the company's long-term growth is under threat.

Additionally, the paper suggested that the new chief executive, Rakesh Kapoor, will announce that the company is shifting its emphasis from America and Europe, where consumers have cut back drastically on their spending, towards emerging markets - especially China, where very few of its brands are sold.

Homeserve (HSV) will provide investors with an update to the saga of its telesales when it issues an interim management statement. The company suspended its call centre staff from selling emergency cover after allegations of mis-selling policies in November and appointed Martin Bennett, then-chief financial officer, as chief operating officer.

At the first-half results in November, Homeserve confirmed that global retention remained at 83.3%. However, Andy Brown, analyst at Panmure Gordon, stated that it was then too early to assess the ongoing impact from the mis-selling.

Brown noted management has been working hard at rebuilding confidence. "The new chief operating officer role is a further indication of how seriously [Homeserve] is taking risk control," he said.

Still, he rated the stock a 'sell'. "Ongoing dialogue with the Financial Services Authority leaves the door open for a full investigation and, therefore, potential fine, while the impact of its international growth aspirations is unknown," he commented.

Shares in the company are trading on a 2012 price to earnings ratio of between 11 and 12 times, with a dividend yield of 4%.

And have holidaymakers not just booked it, but Thomas Cooked it?

Remarks made by competitor Tui Travel (TT.) suggest that they haven't, as the company on Tuesday said it had "outperformed the UK leisure travel market during the key booking period in January", highlighting that its summer 2012 bookings were flat versus minus 14% for the total market.

Shares in Thomas Cook (TCG) have lost over nine tenths of their value over the past year after dire trading forced the company to go cap in hand to its lending banks. It was finally given a lifeline with a £200 million loan extension at the end of November. Investors will be awaiting the tour operator's first-quarter interim management statement with interest.

Finally, we will see whether Supergroup (SGP) will be back in fashion when it issues its interim management statement covering the 13 weeks to 29 January.

Interactive Investor's resident stockpicker Edmond Jackson believes that a disappointing January could indeed present a long-term buying opportunity. "Falling cotton prices should also help margins and Supergroup continues to diversify from austerity-hit, young UK consumers" he said.

Shares in the company have lost over half their value over the past year after the company was hit with "short-term issues" in the transition to a warehouse management systems upgrade - causing a significant reduction in stock reaching its UK stores.

However, Jackson believes that the de-rating and resilient performance reported so far since makes Supergroup an interesting share to be following.

Wednesday 8 February

Trading update

Reckitt Benckiser, Canaccord Financial, Daily Mail & General Trust, Dunelm, Virgin Media, Thomas Cook, BHP Billiton, International Power, Homeserve, Grainger, Supergroup

AGM/EGM/Special Meetings

Sunkar Resources, Daily Mail & General Trust, Future, Grainger, Thomas Cook Group.