Analysts were expecting Harley-Davidson, Inc. (HOG) [Chart - News - Analysis] to report earnings of $0.21 for last quarter, but HOG missed expectations with actual earnings of $0.11---10 cents below above the consensus estimate.

If you compare last quarter's earnings to the $0.71 the company made per share during the same quarter a year ago, you can see that HOG’s earnings are down this year.

{loadposition link_newslink1}

Also, if you compare HOG's 9.67% projected earnings-per-share (EPS) growth rate for the next five years with the projected EPS growth rate of 9.94% for the Recreational Vehicles industry as a whole during that same time frame, you can see that analysts expect HOG to underperform the industry in the future---which is a bad sign for the stock.

Drilling down a little deeper into the Recreational Vehicles industry, you can see how analysts believe HOG will stack up against some of the other stocks in the industry, like Polaris Industries, Inc. (PII) [Chart - News - Analysis] and Thor Industries Inc. (THO) [Chart - News - Analysis], in the future. Analysts believe PII's earnings are going to grow at a rate of 12.00% while THO's earnings are going to grow at a rate of 9.00%.

Earnings season can be a volatile time in the stock market. Check out these videos and articles to be better prepared to take advantage of the large price moves that tend to accompany earnings announcements.

- Earnings Season is Here - Find Out How to Trade It

- Using Options to Trade Earnings

- Understanding Stock Analyst Research and Recommendations

{loadposition link_nowtime}

{loadposition followus}

One event that is almost certain to get a reaction from Wall Street is an analyst upgrade or downgrade. Everyone is looking for an edge in the stock market, and quite often, traders turn to stock analysts to get that edge. Today is no exception.

Harley-Davidson, Inc. (HOG) [Chart - News - Analysis] was upgraded from Sell » Hold on 9/8/2009 by Citigroup. FYI, Citigroup uses the following rating scale when analyzing stocks: Buy, Hold, Sell

{loadposition link_newslink1}

Harley-Davidson, Inc. has an average analyst recommendation score of 2.7 and competes with Polaris Industries, Inc. (PII) [Chart - News - Analysis] and Thor Industries Inc. (THO) [Chart - News - Analysis]---two other stocks in the Recreational Vehicles industry that have average analyst recommendation scores of 2.7 and 2.1 respectively.

Analyst recommendations are averaged and scored using the following rating scale:

- 1.0 = Strong Buy

- 2.0 = Buy

- 3.0 = Hold

- 4.0 = Sell

- 5.0 = Strong Sell

What is a Stock Analyst?

Check out the Understanding Stock Analyst Research and Recommendations video and article for more info.

A stock analysts is a person---typically employed by a large bank, investment firm or analysis company---who devotes his/her life to learning and making predictions about a company and its future performance.

Stock analysts sift through company reports and filings, talk to company management, probe customers and competitors and basically do whatever they can to find out if a company is healthy and growing or sick and shrinking. Because this is incredibly demanding work, stock analysts typically only monitor one or two companies at a time.

{loadposition link_nowtime}

{loadposition followus}

Competition in the Recreational Vehicles industry is starting to heat up, and a few stocks, like Harley-Davidson, Inc. (HOG), are falling behind.

Here's something to watch. Harley-Davidson, Inc., Polaris Industries, Inc. (PII) and Thor Industries Inc. (THO) are each affected by the same general fundamental forces that affect all of the companies in the Recreational Vehicles industry. However, if you dig down into the short interest for each stock and calculate their short-interest ratios, you will see that stock traders have less confidence in Harley-Davidson, Inc. than they do in the other two.

Short-interest ratios tell you how long---on average---it will take short traders to cover their short positions on a particular stock. Take these three stocks for instance.

{loadposition link_newslink1}

Harley-Davidson, Inc. has a current short ratio of 8.92. That means it would take approximately 8.92 days for traders to cover their short positions.

Polaris Industries, Inc. has a current short ratio of 13.02. That means it would take approximately 13.02 days for traders to cover their short positions.

Thor Industries Inc. has a current short ratio of 2.59. That means it would take approximately 2.59 days for traders to cover their short positions.

Typically, the higher the short ratio, the more bearish traders are on a stock. So out of these three stocks in the Recreational Vehicles industry, Thor Industries Inc. seems to be in the best shape in the minds of traders and Polaris Industries, Inc. is in the worst shape.

Of course, stocks with too much short interest are always in danger of becoming the target of a short squeeze so make sure to watch for those stocks with high levels of short interest to suddenly take off on any signs of good fundamental or economic news.

{loadposition link_nowtime}

{loadposition followus}