Week ahead: HSBC and Shell results due; non-farm payrolls in focus

1st May 2026 07:12

(Sharecast News) - Next week will see earnings from the likes of HSBC and Shell, while on Friday, attention will turn to the latest US non-farm payrolls report.

Tuesday sees the release of first-quarter results from HSBC, while across the pond, Q1 numbers are due from Pfizer and AMD.

Richard Hunter, head of markets at Interactive Investor, said the update from Shell will be interesting following a strong full-year performance last year, as announced in February.

"For all the surrounding noise at present, there was evidence of growing success for its strategic plan, which is significant but simple," he said. "Whereas HSBC had been moving towards becoming a business with a slavish reliance on interest rate movements and levels, the revised and increasing focus on the growth in affluent wealth, especially in Asia, is key to the new offering. The group has been investing heavily in this move, giving HSBC higher, but more diversified income streams.

"Apart from the longer-term potential for the key Chinese market, the group previously identified areas such as India and Vietnam as being some of the fastest growing economies at present, while the building economic connections between Asia and the Middle East, notwithstanding any geopolitical conflicts, are also emerging opportunities for HSBC with its sprawling footprint.

"Even so, the group's exposure to Asia could be a temporary fly in the ointment, where a previous $2.1 billion charge for losses related to its Chinese Bank of Communications stake and $1.4 billion of legal provisions contributed to an overall $4.9 billion headwind. Although the commercial real estate situation in Hong Kong and mainland China remains difficult, investors will be keen to see HSBC flex its financial muscles once more given its sheer size. A healthy dividend yield of 4.2% has accompanied a share price increase of 60% over the last year, and further shareholder distributions may not be far away."

On Wednesday, investors will get Q1 earnings from Flutter Entertainment, a Q3 trading update from drinks company Diageo and Q1 trading update from clothing and homeware retailer Next.

In the US, Q2 earnings from Walt Disney and Q1 earnings from Uber Technologies and Kraft Heinz will be in focus.

Thursday will bring first-quarter results from oil giant Shell, a trading and operations update from Harbour Energy and Q1 earnings from McDonald's.

As far as Shell is concerned, analysts at AJ Bell said investors will be looking for a strategic update following the company's recent $16bn acquisition of Canadian gas producer ARC Resources.

"With Shell's current share buyback ending in May, investors will be hoping for another programme despite anticipated pressure on cash flows from the volatility in energy prices, maintaining its run of 17 consecutive quarters of returning capital to shareholders," said Russ Mould and Danni Hewson.

On Friday, Q1 earnings are due from BA and Iberia owner IAG, along with the US non-farm payrolls report, average earnings and unemployment rate for April.

Aarin Chiekrie, equity analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown, noted that IAG is heading into results on the back of a difficult period for the airline industry following the near-doubling of fuel prices.

"First-quarter numbers should hold up relatively well though, with underlying operating profits forecast to jump around 45% higher to £288mn in the historically quiet quarter," he said. "Much more important will be the outlook for the rest of the year, and a cautious tone is expected next week. IAG's in a better position than most airlines to stomach the recent challenges thanks to its strong balance sheet and higher margins.

"Higher fuel prices mean higher ticket prices, so expect to see some weakness in near-term bookings. The group had also planned to expand its capacity by about 3% in 2026. But historically, airlines can't pass on the full cost of higher fuel prices to consumers, so capacity tends to get trimmed to help protect profitability. With no clear timeline for a resolution of the Middle East conflict, investors are keen to hear whether there's been any changes to IAG's capacity plans this year."