Wall Street Week Ahead

Wall Street heads into a relatively quiet week for U.S. economic data, putting geopolitics and a handful of major corporate events in the spotlight. President Donald Trump will host Chinese President Xi Jinping at the White House on Thursday, with trade, tariffs, Taiwan and AI expected to feature prominently in the talks. Investors will also be watching for possible announcements on Chinese purchases of U.S. goods, including Boeing ( BA ) aircraft, as the two sides seek to manage tensions between the world's two largest economies.

Costco ( COST ) reports Thursday in the week's most closely watched earnings release. Darden Restaurants ( DRI ), Cintas ( CTAS ), Paychex ( PAYX ) and General Mills ( GIS ) are also scheduled to report. Meta Platforms ( META ) will hold its two-day Connect event beginning Wednesday, with updates expected on AI, AI-powered glasses and virtual and mixed reality. Elsewhere, McDonald's ( MCD ) holds an investor day Wednesday, global PMI reports are due the same day, and the Treasury Department will make a closely watched bond-buyback announcement.

Earnings spotlight: Monday, Sept. 21: ABIVAX ( ABVX ). See the full earnings calendar.

Earnings spotlight: Tuesday, Sept. 22: AutoZone ( AZO ), KB Home ( KBH ). See the full earnings calendar.

Earnings spotlight: Wednesday, Sept. 23: Cracker Barrel ( CBRL ), General Mills ( GIS ), Paychex ( PAYX ). See the full earnings calendar.

Earnings spotlight: Thursday, Sept. 24: Costco ( COST ), BlackBerry ( BB ). See the full earnings calendar.

Cestrian Capital Research (Alex King) argues that concerns surrounding Oracle’s ( ORCL ) rising debt and heavy AI-related capital spending are overstated. The author draws on Oracle’s history of adapting to major technology shifts, arguing that Larry Ellison has repeatedly positioned the company to benefit from changing markets. The article’s central argument is that Oracle’s growing Remaining Performance Obligations (RPO) and deferred revenue provide visibility into future revenue growth. RPO has increased first, followed by deferred revenue, with recognized revenue beginning to follow. Oracle’s latest quarter saw revenue growth accelerate to 30% year over year , while deferred revenue increased 130% , supporting management’s expectations for further growth. Despite concerns about AI spending and customer financing, the author believes Oracle’s fundamentals remain strong and its valuation is reasonable at approximately 7x trailing revenue . Cestrian expects Oracle shares to reach $250 in 2026 and rates the stock Accumulate between $134 and $198 , Hold between $198 and $250, and Stop below $134.