Discount retailer Target Corp. (NYSE: TGT) beat analysts' earnings estimates of $0.86 EPS today, hitting a record $0.90 for a non-holiday quarter. The company's sales revenues came in at $15.2 billion, below expectations of $15.58 billion. Retailer BJ's Wholesale Club Inc. (NYSE: BJ) also reported earnings that exceeded expectations this morning. BJ's earnings per share rang in at $0.49, higher than analysts' estimates of $0.43. Sales totaled $2.55 billion, below estimates of $2.61 billion. Yesterday's earnings report from Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. (NYSE: WMT) beat estimates of both EPS and revenues

Ford Motor Co. (F) has been on the resurgence in the past year or so. It's chief domestic rival General Motors has yet to make a return to Wall Street, Japan auto maker Toyota (TM) has been beset by recalls and Honda (HMC) has struggled for the past six months as the auto industry looks to the future.

There's nothing like a steaming-hot cup of coffee to get you started in the morning; and for investors, there's nothing like a freshly brewed pot of profits to get a stock going. These two pleasures in life can be found in one company -- Starbucks (SBUX). The worldwide dominator in the coffee space is one of the most recognizable brands in the world, and with strong sales and earnings Starbucks story is now a case study in how to run a successful specialty beverage operation.

Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (NYSE: BRK-B, BRK-A) just released its portfolio -- albeit belatedly. Warren Buffett's company has shown its investment holdings as of the end of the first quarter. The one thing that stands out in Berkshire Hathaway's holdings list for the quarter is a clear movement away from health care -- including outright sells of positions in healthcare stocks United Health Group (NYSE: UNH) and Wellpoint Inc. (NYSE: WLP). Buffett also reduced Berkshire's position in health care stock Johnson and Johnson (NYSE: JNJ). Pharmaceutical stocks GlaxoSmithKline (NYSE: GSK) and Sanofi Aventis SA (NYSE: SNY) both remained steady.

Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. (NYSE: WMT) posted earnings today that included EPS of $0.88 on revenues of $99.1 billion this morning, beating EPS expectations of $0.83 and revenue estimates of $98.3 billion. The company also guided its second fiscal quarter EPS higher, from $0.88 last year to $0.93-$0.98. Analysts were already expecting EPS for the quarter to hit $0.98. Target Corp. (NYSE:TGT) reports quarterly earnings tomorrow and analysts are expecting EPS of $0.86, up from $0.69 a year ago, and revenues of $15.58 billion, up from $14.83 in the first quarter of 2009.

Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. (NYSE: WMT) posted earnings today that included EPS of $0.88 on revenues of $99.1 billion this morning, beating EPS expectations of $0.83 and revenue estimates of $98.3 billion. The company also guided its second fiscal quarter EPS higher, from $0.88 last year to $0.93-$0.98. Analysts were already expecting EPS for the quarter to hit $0.98. Target Corp. (NYSE:TGT) reports quarterly earnings tomorrow and analysts are expecting EPS of $0.86, up from $0.69 a year ago, and revenues of $15.58 billion, up from $14.83 in the first quarter of 2009.

McDonald's (MCD) is increasingly becoming a fast beverage stock instead of a fast food stock. And with the non-alcoholic beverage business in the U.S worth $153 billion, there are plenty of profits to share with restaurants like Starbucks (SBUX), Burger King (BKC), Caribou Coffee (CBOU) and others.

Shares of Chinese solar IPO JinkoSolar (JKS) are trading down today, as are many of the solar wafer makers including YGE, LDK and TSL.

Lowe's Q2 forecasts were lower than expected, perhaps due to the company's concern over 'strategic defaults.'

Sirius XM Radio Inc. (NASDAQ: SIRI) is up today following a strange guidance move in which the company raised estimates for the whole year only days after reporting a surprise profit.

Pre-paid revenues are harder for carries to predict, and churn rates are higher because pre-paid customers have no reason to stick with a carrier if a lower price is available elsewhere. The announcement that Sprint (S) is teaming up with Wal-Mart (WMT) to offer a new low-cost pre-paid plan could change that.

For the seventh straight month, retail sales in the U.S. have risen, according to the U.S. Department of Commerce.

Late Wednesday, enterprise software giant SAP AG (SAP)announced that it will acquire database and mobile software maker Sybase (SY). According to ChangeWave Research, SAP may be expanding at just the right time.

Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez posted a message on Twitter this morning that a natural gas explosion in the Caribbean sank a semi-submersible drilling rig. The rig, called the Aban Pearl, was owned by India's Aban Offshore Ltd. and all 95 crew on board were safely evacuated according to Chavez. No cause was given for the explosion and Venezuelan officials say that the rig explosion poses no environmental risk. But the blast comes a little more than three weeks after a rig owned by Transocean Ltd. (RIG) and operated for BP plc (BP) exploded in the Gulf of Mexico leaving 11 workers missing and presumed dead, and leaking an estimated 5,000 b/d of crude oil into the Gulf.

The owner of the Deepwater Horizon that exploded in flames and sank in the Gulf of Mexico, Transocean Ltd. (NYSE: RIG), has filed a petition in the the US District Court in Houston seeking to limit the company's liability for the incident and asking the court to issue an injuction restricting lawsuits already filed in another jurisdiction. The explosion at a well being drilled for BP plc. (NYSE: BP) destroyed the semi-submersible Deepwater Horizon and killed 11 workers.

Priceline.com Inc. (NASDAQ: PCLN), an online travel merchant with a market cap of almost $10 billion, reported strong first-quarter earnings on Tuesday. This is along with strong results from other travel stocks such as Ctrip International Ltd. (NASDAQ: CTRP), Expedia, Inc. (NASDAQ: EXPE) and Orbitz Worldwide Inc. (NYSE: OWW).

China Internet stock Baidu Inc. (BIDU), had a 10-for-1 stock split on Wednesday. Investors seemed to gobble up the "cheaper" shares even though the underlying value of Baidu didn't change after the split, just the share price and the number of BIDU stock shares on the market. This is a case study for why pricey stocks like tech stocks Google (GOOG) and Apple (AAPL) should execute splits of their own. Other pricey blue chips like Intuitive Surgical (ISRG), Priceline (PCLN) or MasterCard (MA) may be good candidates as well.