‘Shark Week’ is here—and Google, Microsoft, Apple, Meta, Amazon report earnings: The Week Ahead

July 25

Discovery’s annual Shark Week programming block, which started on Sunday, continues through next Sunday, July 31.

July 26

Ad Age hosts its annual Small Agency Conference & Awards, a two-day in-person affair taking place in Chicago. Speakers include Asmirh Davis, founding partner and chief strategy officer at Majority; Dave Lafound, co-founder and co-CEO at No Fixed Address; and Michelle St. Jacques, chief marketing officer at Molson Coors.

Google and Microsoft both report quarterly results today. At Google, advertisers will look at how the search market is holding up, and any insights into the coming deprecation of cookies. The company will also give details about the health of YouTube. Google execs will hold a conference call at 5 p.m. ET. As for Microsoft, it just struck a blowout deal to run Netflix’s ads business, and has other properties like LinkedIn to hold advertisers’ interest. Microsoft’s conference call starts at 5:30 p.m. ET.

McDonald’s reports its quarterly earnings. Focusing on its core menu and ways to elevate it, along with digital loyalty progress, has been a winning combination for the chain.

July 27

Meta delivers its second-quarter numbers today, providing more data surrounding its advertising business and user numbers. Investors are wondering how the digital ad market is faring, especially under the privacy rules changes from platforms like Apple. Meta’s quarter will also show how well the company is holding up under greater competition from apps like TikTok. Meta execs will host a call at 5 p.m. ET.

Kraft Heinz reports second-quarter earnings. With inflation at a 40-year high, can consumer goods companies hold their ground?  

Hilton reports second-quarter earnings. Despite the high cost of gasoline and an increase in flight delays and cancelations, many hotel brands have said they are seeing a continued rebound following pandemic lows. In its last quarterly report, Hilton’s revenue nearly doubled.

Watt Global Media hosts the three-day Chicken Marketing Summit in Braselton, Georgia, starting today. IRI’s Chris DuBois will participate in a panel about how the increasing number of Gen Z shoppers will impact chicken demand. 

July 28

Anheuser-Busch InBev reports quarterly financials. The world’s biggest brewer’s biggest U.S. beer brand, Bud Light, is under creative review and has been struggling, but the industry—and the company—sees a lot of potential in drinks that are not beer.

Read more: Bud Light is ailing—can a new agency fix it?

Amazon releases its earnings report, giving a taste of the e-commerce giant’s performance, with particular focus on how broader economic trends have affected online shopping. Amazon execs will host a conference call at 5:30 p.m. ET.

Apple announces its financial results, covering a period during which the platform made software updates to iOS that affect marketers—and as the company develops its own advertising business, too. Apple’s conference call is at 5 p.m. ET.

Roku’s second-quarter earnings call is slated for 5 p.m. ET.

Ipsos hosts an event in Washington D.C. on how inflation, polarization and populism will affect the midterm elections.

Collage Group hosts a webinar on how parents differ from non-parents in terms of “cultural blind spots.”

July 29

It’s System Administrator Appreciation Day, which is apparently a real thing that is nearly a quarter-century old. Thank your colleagues in IT.

“DC League of Super-Pets"—an animated DC Comics superhero comedy featuring the voices of Dwayne Johnson, Kevin Hart, Kate McKinnon, John Krasinski, Vanessa Bayer, Olivia Wilde, Natasha Lyonne, Diego Luna, Thomas Middleditch, Ben Schwartz and Keanu Reeves—opens in U.S. theaters today. “All pets have secrets, theirs are super,” per the movie’s tagline.