It’s only the fifth day in June, but already investors are getting nervous about end of quarter earnings reports. There’s still almost a month to go before most public companies close out their books for the second-quarter, ending June 30.

Meanwhile, on Wall Street, analysts are slashing profit forecasts that still look way too high to me.

Already, high-profile investment firm Lehman Brothers (which, like some other brokers, closed its books May 31) plunged in value because the market anticipated a large loss for this quarter. It will be Lehman’s first loss in nearly 25 years - and more asset write-offs are likely. Lehman will fess-up on June 16…stay tuned.

Also, two leading banks just sacked their CEOs amid mounting sub-prime losses. Wachovia got rid of Ken Thompson, who had the misfortune of buying California lender Golden West Financial for US$25 billion…pretty much at the top of the sub-prime boom two years ago.

That acquisition turned out… badly, to say the least. Meanwhile, Washington Mutual’s Chairman will “step down” according to the bank.

These are just the latest casualties from the sub-prime credit crunch, but rest assured, more heads will roll before this financial reign-of-terror is over.

So what’s ahead for earnings this quarter?

Financial stocks are expected to fare the worst, once again this quarter (surprise, surprise). Consumer discretionary shares are next in line, with an earnings hit of -10% expected this period.

There is some good news however. Energy sector stocks should post 16% earnings gains, which is no surprise with sky-high oil and gas prices. Tech-sector profits are also expected to shine this quarter, which is a pleasant surprise to investors amid a slowing economy.

Technology stocks are enjoying a healthy export boom, due in part to the falling buck, but also from healthy demand from overseas markets. Also, tech companies just aren’t as impacted by soaring raw-material costs, like rising oil prices, which does impact so many other sectors of the economy.

The result is likely to be 15%-plus profit gains for technology shares this quarter. That’s a very nice showing amid the Wall Street gloom.

MIKE BURNICK, Senior Editor & Global Markets Analyst

EDITOR’S NOTE: Right now, Mike is researching several key ways to play the technology sector for a possible double or triple-digit gain in the coming months. Keep an eye on his Market Shock Trader alerts for more updates on these stellar plays.

Source: Why More Heads Will Roll Down Wall Street