It's the Fourth of July weekend, and movie studios want to capture as much money for their films as possible, even if they've already been in the theaters for several weeks. No matter what, though, Sony (NYSE: SNE)'s Hancock, starring the always excellent Will Smith, is set to be the financial superhero of the weekend. Already, as of this writing, the film has taken in about $24 million through Wednesday, according to Boxofficemojo. The movie had some showings on Tuesday before its official debut in the middle of the week. It was number one on Wednesday, followed by Disney (NYSE: DIS)'s Wall-E. The robot flick so far has a total tally of around $86 million.

Poor Marvel (NYSE: MVL) and its The Incredible Hulk project. Will anybody be interested in seeing the big green guy now that Hancock is in the marketplace? Indeed, Hulk took in less than a million bucks on Wednesday, and it ranked number seven for that day. Looks like the Hulk fever is winding down at the multiplex, and it looks like Marvel's stock has had its run for the time being. The stock closed on Thursday at $31.20, well away from the 52-week high of $37.41. I still hold Marvel shares, and although there are no big catalysts on the immediate horizon, I have a long-term outlook on the company. Still, the trader in me wishes that I had lightened up on the position back at the $37 level to book some gains.

Hancock should do well north of $100 million once the Fourth of July holiday period has passed. The marketing, in my opinion, is very compelling, and from what I know about the story, it's a smart idea that provides a nice balance to the frivolous plots of Iron Man and Hulk (I'm using the term "frivolous" here with affection). Sony's scored a hit, maybe even a new franchise (I haven't seen the film, so I can't say if a sequel is feasible or not within the confines of the concept), but it won't do much to move the company's stock. Those looking to play the Hollywood game might want to wait for Marvel to pull back further from current levels.

Disclosure: I own Disney and Marvel; positions can change at any time.

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I didn't think Disney's (NYSE: DIS) Wall-E movie would do as well as it did over the weekend. I thought $60 million was too much to hope for (see my previous piece on the subject). I was wrong. According to Boxofficemojo, the Pixar picture pulled in more than $62 million at domestic theaters and came out on top.

Assuming the film continues to do well in upcoming weekends, Wall-E should provide a nice counterbalance to the relative disappointment of Disney's Prince Caspian project that was released in May. While Wall-E won't move Disney's stock all by itself, the movie and its characters should help drive the studio segment in future quarters, as well as provide some opportunities for promotions and initiatives in other parts of the company, such as the theme parks.

Wanted, distributed by General Electric's (NYSE: GE) Universal, debuted in second place with a haul of more than $50 million. The movie, starring Angelina Jolie, had some snazzy, Matrix-like commercials powering its appeal. I can see why the numbers were big on this one. Time Warner (NYSE: TWX) and Get Smart didn't stand a chance against Wanted. It dropped two spots to third place with a tally of $20 million. And, no, I still don't find Steve Carell funny.

DreamWorks Animation's (NYSE: DWA) Kung Fu Panda was number four for the weekend with about $11.7 million, but the important thing with this one is that its total gross now stands at almost $180 million, making the $200 million mark a lock. Marvel's (NYSE: MVL) The Incredible Hulk came in fifth with a gross of around $9 million. Its total to date is $115 million. I had higher hopes for Marvel's second movie of the summer.

I think Wall-E will do well over the Fourth of July, but keep in mind that Will Smith's Hancock hits the screens this week. That project looks like a perfect vehicle for Smith's talents, and its superhero theme should offer a lot of competition for Marvel's Hulk. The fireworks are set to begin shortly.

Disclosure: I own Disney, GE, and Marvel; positions can change at any time.

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MOST NOTEWORTHY:

• Baird upgraded Puget Energy (NYSE: PSD) to Outperform from Neutral citing valuation on a stand-alone basis and sees additional upside if the merger with Macquarie is approved this fall.
  
• Piper upgraded shares of RC2 Corp (NASDAQ: RCRC) to Buy from Neutral following the Children's Publishing Division acquisition as they view it as a good strategic fit and find RCRC shares attractively valued.
  
• RBC upgraded Marvel Entertainment (NYSE: MVL) shares to Outperform from Sector Perform to reflect the company's visible earnings growth and valuation.

• ASML Holdings (NASDAQ: ASML) was raised to Buy from Neutral at Goldman. The firm also added shares to the Conviction Buy List.
  
• Invitrogen (NASDAQ: IVGN) was upgraded to Overweight from Neutral at JP Morgan.
  
• Citigroup upgraded Clearwire (NASDAQ: CLWR) and Credence (NASDAQ: CMOS) to Hold from Sell.

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I didn't think Get Smart was going to come in at number one, but that's exactly what happened, according to Boxofficemojo. The film, distributed by Time Warner (NYSE: TWX), took in an estimated $39 million at domestic theaters. The film, quite frankly, looks horrible, and I don't get the fascination people have with Steve Carell's supposed "comedic talents." I don't really find him funny. Doesn't matter, though, because moviegoers have crowned Carell king of the box-office weekend whether I like it or not.

I'm actually more concerned with the race for second place between Marvel's (NYSE: MVL) The Incredible Hulk and DreamWorks Animation's (NYSE: DWA) Kung Fu Panda. Both are estimated as of this writing to have booked a little more than $21 million in ticket sales. I'm concerned about this because I own shares of Marvel, and I'm disappointed in the movie's box-office performance. As of now, the new Hulk has about $96 million in terms of total gross. The fact that it hasn't scored over $100 million by now, coupled with it experiencing a 60% drop for this weekend compared to its debut weekend, leaves me less than satisfied.

Viacom's (NYSE: VIA) The Love Guru bombed. Looks like you can't always count on stars to deliver the important opening-weekend audience. Are people getting sick of Mike Myers? (Jonathan Berr wondered the same thing.) He was only able to conjure up about $14 million for Viacom shareholders, bringing his film to a fourth-place debut. That's embarrassing for Myers, but unlike Steve Carell, he is genuinely funny (although maybe not so much in this particular film, it seems). News Corp.'s (NYSE: NWS) M. Night Shyamalan movie The Happening grossed around $10 million and came in fifth.

It wasn't too exciting of a weekend for the multiplex. Steve Carell I guess proved that the Get Smart brand still has value. As for me, I'm hoping Marvel will see some better word of mouth on its Hulk project. The fact that DreamWorks Animation's Panda picture is giving it a run for its money simply proves that people still remember how bad 2003's Hulk was. Hopefully, Marvel can drum up some desire in moviegoers to give the film a chance.

Disclosure: I own Marvel; positions can change at any time.

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I love summer, not only for the weather, but also for all the movies making their way to the multiplexes. According to this article at Marketwatch, for the first six weeks of the U.S. summer box-office season, the total gross for theatrical movies hit $1.46 billion, a statistic that represents about a 5% increase year-over-year in the comparable period. You can thank hits such as Marvel's (NYSE: MVL) Iron Man and Viacom's (NYSE: VIA) Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull for driving the nice results.

Now, I don't mean to rain on this parade, but I'm afraid I find myself in a similar frame of mind in terms of a piece I wrote back in March about the 2007 movie-business statistics. You see, I always like to look at number of tickets sold as a barometer for the true health of Hollywood. The number of tickets sold increased 1.6% to 206.2 million. The average price of a movie ticket rose 2.9% to $7.08. Now, while I am glad to see an increase this time around in terms of number of tickets sold, I don't find a 1.6% increase terribly exciting. It tells me that the theater industry still needs to convince people that it's fun to get out of the house, away from the giant televisions and the snazzy home-theater systems, and chomp on overpriced popcorn in a dark auditorium. Going to movie theaters is something that, in my opinion, can't truly be replicated in the home. A lot of people don't share that opinion, however.

The challenge for Disney (NYSE: DIS), Time Warner (NYSE: TWX), Sony (NYSE: SNE), and General Electric's (NYSE: GE) Universal is to make people feel that waiting for the DVD shouldn't be the norm. The shared experience of a movie screening is a unique part of culture, and studios need to communicate this fact through their marketing campaigns. I do think there is more work ahead for Hollywood. Focus on the number of tickets sold, that's the big metric.

Disclosure: I own Disney and GE; positions can change at any time.

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Marvel's (NYSE: MVL) movie The Incredible Hulk was incredibly disappointing (to me at least). No, I'm not talking about the quality of the movie. I didn't actually see it. But Boxofficemojo is reporting that it has grossed an estimated $54.5 million at domestic theaters over the weekend. While that was good enough for first place, it wasn't good enough for shareholders. The movie bombed, plain and simple.

Why am I being so hard on a number-one movie? It's not so difficult to understand. The awful Hulk movie that was released back in 2003 grossed $62.1 million in its opening weekend. There's no way to spin this. We've had five years of inflation between that terrible flick and this new iteration. Simply put, it should have grossed at least $65/$70 million, especially on the heels of Iron Man. I'm a shareholder of Marvel, and I don't like the fact that the success of Marvel's first movie of the summer didn't synergize a little better with the angry green guy.

Focusing on the positive, Marvel was able to beat DreamWorks Animation (NYSE: DWA) and its Kung Fu Panda project. The cartoon took in about $34 million and came in second. M. Night Shyamalan's The Happening, distributed by News Corp. (NYSE: NWS), did okay by coming in third with a gross of around $30 million. Some analysts thought that the horror flick would do a little bit less than that number. Personally, I thought it should have come in second place considering Shyamalan's name, but I guess people aren't as excited as they used to be about his exercises in cinematic twists (the fact that it was rated R also inhibited its blockbuster potential). Sony's (NYSE: SNE) Adam Sandler comedy You Don't Mess with the Zohan did in fact get messed with yet again, dropping two spots to fourth place, grossing about $16 million. I've heard bad reviews on this one. Viacom (NYSE: VIA) and Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull were daring enough for fifth place. Everyone's favorite archaeologist has now breached the $275 million level. Great to see a favorite character of mine from the past doing so well.

I just don't get it. The Incredible Hulk should have done better. Apparently moviegoers didn't believe that the reboot would truly be better than the 2003 film. Marvel should still make money from the current release, and I assume it has a good chance of besting its predecessor after its final run (that film ultimately grossed $132 million), but I was hoping for a lot more money.

Disclosure: I own Marvel; positions can change at any time.

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Yesterday, I wrote about my nervousness over Marvel's (NYSE: MVL) The Incredible Hulk. Today, I'd like to talk about how I wouldn't be so nervous if the Iron Man sequel ended up being directed by someone other than Jon Favreau. There are two excellent articles on The Motley Fool discussing this issue, one by Nathan Alderman and one by Marvel expert Tim Beyers. At the time those articles were published earlier in the week, it had seemed that Marvel was reticent about ponying up a higher compensation package for Mr. Favreau on the heels of the awesome success of the first movie starring Robert Downey, Jr. David Maisel, chairman of Marvel Studios, apparently wants to be very conservative about the company's above-the-line costs. Alderman thinks Marvel should give Favreau the requested raise, while Beyers understands the Hollywood dynamics going on and can see why both sides are doing what they are doing.

By the time my own piece is published, it's possible Favreau may be confirmed as the director of the second Iron Man (as I write this, there are rumors that a deal has been offered). Regardless of what happens, I'd like to offer my opinion on whether or not Favreau is an absolutely necessary component for an Iron Man sequel.

He isn't. And if shareholders think he is, then they had better rethink their investment in Marvel. What shareholders must ask themselves is this: Is it the director that is responsible for the ultimate success of a Marvel film, or is it Marvel management and the intangible value of the Marvel intellectual-property portfolio? Which element adds more equity? As far as I'm concerned as a shareholder, I'm investing in Marvel. I'm not investing in Jon Favreau. Any investor who believes that any one director is indispensable is going to be in for a stomach-churning ride, because when the day comes that a Jon Favreau or a Sam Raimi (he directed the Spider-Man flicks) decides that Marvel is no longer paying them what they're worth and jumps ship, the stock could easily see an overreaction sell-off.

Indeed, shareholders need to also remember that Marvel has given a rough estimate of the effect different box-office milestones will have on the value of the company. If one of the self-produced movies grosses $100 million at the multiplex, it will have a different effect than a movie that grosses $300 million. I'd have to presume that if Marvel continues to give all kinds of raises and increased participation schemes to above-the-line talent as new sequels are announced, then shareholders might not see the predicted effect on earnings flow that Marvel has stated in the past. It's hard to say without knowing specifics of each deal (it's too bad Marvel doesn't have to disclose that information).

According to Beyers, Favreau stated in a radio interview that he received $4 million for Iron Man. If Favreau were to receive $4 million for a sequel and no backend participation, call me crazy, but I find that fair. It's not like he's risking anything. Hey, I'm risking my money here. If his sequel tanks, I get punished. He still gets to keep a ton of dough, and he gets to have fun doing a job that most of us will never get a chance of doing. I'm a wannabe screenwriter, and I can tell you this -- I'd write the sequel for a heck of a lot less than whatever they'll be paying the writer that actually does it.

Disney (NYSE: DIS), Time Warner (NYSE: TWX), Viacom (NYSE: VIA), News Corp. (NYSE: NWS), and any other media company looking to create value for its shareholders needs to keep budgets under control. If signing up a cheaper director is what needs to be done, then do it. I'd be willing to bet that Jon Favreau isn't the only guy out there who can direct an Iron Man feature. And I'm sure Marvel has the skill to find a replacement if need be.

Disclosure: I own Disney and Marvel; positions can change at any time.

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I have a confession to make: I'm getting nervous as the weekend approaches. A certain movie has me rather frightened. Is it that creepy picture about mass suicides from M. Night Shyamalan? Nope. It's Marvel's (NYSE: MVL) The Incredible Hulk. I'm a shareholder of Marvel, and I'm worried about its prospects. It opens on Friday the 13th. Yeah, that's a lucky omen.

Hulk, which is being distributed by General Electric's (NYSE: GE) Universal (I own GE as well, but this won't move GE at all), represents a fresh start for the green, angry beast. If you'll recall, there was a Hulk movie back in summer 2003. It was horrible. In fact, I remember getting up and walking around the theater during a portion of the film so that I could do a bit of self-editing on it. This time around could be different. I just read a review from The Hollywood Reporter that was featured in this Reuters link, and I have to say, I do feel a little calmer. According to the review, this new take on the Hulk character is an entertaining cinematic diversion wholly suitable for the dog days of summer. It apparently is a superior product.

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I just came back from an advanced screening of Marvel Entertainments (NYSE: MVL) Incredible Hulk and it surpassed my expectations as did Iron Man before it.

The preview Wednesday night, two days ahead of the premier scheduled for Friday the 13th, is probably too scary for little tykes but it is a superb blend of movie technology magic and the passion of the cast and crew.

It's all in the eyes. Unlike the glib Tony Stark character in Iron Man, played fittingly by Robert Downey Jr., Edward Norton is the emotionally gamma ray charged green powerhouse that only roars, and must communicate his feeling though his eyes. This is the case when the Hulk's temper rages and when he is expressing his affection for Dr. Elizabeth Ross, played by to perfection by Liv Tyler.

Once the action starts it does not let up much, and it's too loud for my middle age constitution. However, I think Marvel has another hit on its hands.

Marvel's stock closed at $36.33 on Wednesday afternoon. Prior to the opening of Iron Man it was around $29.00. A 20% return in a few weeks is great. I hope to review the current stock metrics in more detail soon and might buy some.

To buy it six weeks ago would have been a good short term investment but would have been speculative. I think that is still the case now. More so because of the stock appreciation near its all time high, but perhaps less so, given the track record and solid strategy they seem to have developed.

Sheldon Liber is the CEO of a small private investment company and the principal for design and research at an architecture & planning firm. He writes the columns Chasing Value and Serious Money. Disclosure: I do not own stock in MVL but I am considering it.

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The weekend domestic box-office results weren't too shocking. I pretty much knew that DreamWorks Animation's (NYSE: DWA) Kung Fu Panda would kick its way to the top (I wonder how many writers will be using that phrase when covering the movie this week). But when I saw that Boxofficemojo estimated a $60 million gross for the cartoon, I actually was disappointed. These days, a $60 million haul in the summertime doesn't seem impressive. I thought Panda might have been worth a little more. But, after checking some of the historical openings for other DreamWorks pictures, I realized that Panda did all right. It actually was one of the bigger debuts for the studio.

Even though the cartoon seemed a lock for first place, I thought Sony's (NYSE: SNE) You Don't Mess with the Zohan project would be a close second. At a $40 million estimated gross, it wasn't. I don't know if you can mess with Zohan or not, but you apparently can mess with Adam Sandler and best his star power. Viacom's (NYSE: VIA) Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull is still going strong in third place. It has crossed the $250 million level, and it is headed for $300 million. Time Warner's (NYSE: TWX) Sex and the City, however, has lost a great deal of thunder, dropping from first to fourth place in its second weekend at the multiplexes. It is just shy of the $100 million mark. Is Sex nothing more than an opening-weekend phenomenon? It seems that way, but we'll have to see how steep the drops are in subsequent weekends.

The Strangers, from General Electric's (NYSE: GE) Universal Pictures, dropped from third to fifth place in its second weekend, a rather predictable event for a horror movie. At a $37 million total gross so far, The Strangers won't go down as a huge triumph, but you've got to love the profit potential for this low-budget flick that succeeded in counterprogramming its way to summertime glory. Universal obviously thought the film's concept possessed a chance to score a $100 million total haul since it placed the movie against the big guns of this busy period, but that's okay, the try was worth it in this case.

One other movie I've been keeping my eye on, Marvel's (NYSE: MVL) Iron Man, is finally out of the top five. It's grossed about $288 million so far and will soon cross $300 million. Shareholders are loving Iron Man and are hoping that lightning can strike twice next week with the new Hulk movie.

As for DreamWorks Animation and its stock, I'm not a buyer at the moment now that the news is out on its latest feature. I do, however, like the company and actually find it to be quite Marvel-like in terms of its utility for playing the movie business. Investors will have to watch the price action carefully if they are interested in the company.

Disclosure: I own shares in Marvel and GE; positions can change at any time.

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I read an article out on the AP over the weekend that reflected some thoughts I've been having about the Blu-ray medium. It just doesn't feel like people are that crazy for the format just yet, and it looks like my perception may be right.

The AP piece talks about how the price of the players seems to be too high for consumers. With some going for $399, the value issue is understandable in the context of an economic slowdown. Another good point was brought up: since consumers have been busy upgrading to large-screen TVs, there's just not enough left in some household budgets for adoption of the relatively new technology.

Wal-Mart (NYSE: WMT), however, was mentioned as a retailer that is planning to become competitive in terms of price on Blu-ray units. Nevertheless, pundits believe it might be a few years before Blu-ray becomes saturated in homes across America.

As an investor who holds media companies in his portfolio -- Disney (NYSE: DIS), Marvel (NYSE: MVL) and, through General Electric (NYSE: GE), I have exposure to NBC Universal -- I am hoping that the new format becomes ubiquitous as swiftly as possible. Compared to DVD's initial adoption, there is some statistical evidence that the curve is actually proceeding at a faster pace.

So, no matter what, Blu-ray saturation is on its way, and with it, the opportunity for media companies everywhere to monetize their libraries all over again. Until that happens, media concerns are experimenting with all manner of digital content distribution to the home. They want to see if they can establish as direct a relationship as is practical with the consumer, thus cutting out the retailing middleman.

Companies such as Time Warner (NYSE: TWX) and Sony (NYSE: SNE) are all pushing the benefits of Blu-ray, and I hope they succeed, not only in explaining the value-added, but in keeping the price point of the discs at a high level. While I obviously don't mind the hardware costs coming down, costs for content are always a challenge to keep from depreciating since we live in a digital world that has taught many in recent generations that content should be free. On an anecdotal level, I've detected a lot of resistance to paying higher price points for Blu-ray discs. This is why Disney et al. are so high on digital distribution, as it's a margin issue.

So, it may be a little while before media companies truly see a big growth benefit from Blu-ray. But when the format turns into a regular zeitgeist sweeping the home-theater population, media entities will be able to prove once again that content is king.

Disclosure: I own shares of Disney, Marvel, and GE; positions can change at any time.

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The box-office estimates from Boxofficemojo for this past weekend surprised the heck out of me. Apparently, I'm out of touch with how popular this HBO show actually was because Time Warner's (NYSE: TWX) Sex and the City captured first place at domestic multiplexes, hauling in over $55 million as of now (the numbers will change when they are finalized later on). Honestly, I thought I was going to be writing about the failure of Carrie and the gang. Kudos to Time Warner for opening this picture to great success.

Viacom's (NYSE: VIA) Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull continues to bring in the nostalgia crowd as well as generate new fans for the franchise. It came in second place with about $46 million for the weekend. Still, I'm amazed that "Sex and the City" topped it.

But the film at number three perhaps surprised me even more. It's called The Strangers, and it's distributed by General Electric's (NYSE: GE) Universal Pictures. I never thought it would gross anywhere near $20 million, but it looks like it may have ended up doing just that. The concept seemed quite appealing in its simplicity. I haven't seen it yet, but it seems to rely on primal bump-in-the-night scares as opposed to all-out visceral gore. Those masks the intruders wear are incredibly creepy.

Marvel (NYSE: MVL) shareholders (I am one) are now counting the days till Iron Man, which was the number-four flick, crosses $300 million at domestic theaters. That level should have a significant effect on operating income over time; right now, the movie stands at a total gross of approximately $276 million. I'd say $300 million will be reached within two weeks. And who's at number five? My old friend, Prince Caspian. Actually, I'm being a bit sarcastic there, since I am so disappointed as a Disney (NYSE: DIS) shareholder at this movie's performance. After three weekends, the fantasy has a total tally in the vicinity of $115 million. That, my friends, isn't sexy at all...

Disclosure: I own shares of Disney, General Electric, and Marvel; positions change at any time.

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The Marvel Entertainment (NYSE: MVL) release of the box office hit Iron Man, still No. 1 in world wide distribution, has got Hasbro Inc. (NYSE: HAS) rethinking its potential opportunities to leverage its stable of characters into larger than life features.

Hasbro, the nation's #2 toymaker, has reacquired the worldwide distribution rights to over 1,000 hours of animated programming.

Under the terms of its new deal with Sunbow Productions, Hasbro has regained ownership of 1,000 hours of cartoons featuring G.I. Joe, Transformers, My Little Pony and Littlest Pet Shop. With the tremendous success of the live action Transformers movie, and a second Transformers as well as a G.I. Joe live action film in production, Hasbro clearly wants full control over its intellectual properties in order to maximize their exploitation.

Hasbo closed yesterday pennies off it's 52-week high of $37.35 and is trading around $36 midday today. Meanwhile Marvel also closed yesterday just off it's 52-week high of $35 closing at $34.27. It is down now in midday trading around $34.50. However, it is up since I posted Chasing Value: Marvel's Iron Man will be HUGE!

UPDATE: HAS closed at $36.26 down -$0.93, and MVL closed at $33.73 down -$0.54.

Sheldon Liber is the CEO of a small private investment company and the principal for design and research at an architecture & planning firm. He writes the columns Chasing Value and Serious Money. Disclosure: I do not hold any position or own shares of HAS or MVL.

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Here are some highlights from this past week's earnings coverage from BloggingStocks:

• Activision Inc. (NASDAQ: ATVI) posted stellar results on the popularity of Guitar Hero and Transformers.
• Airgas Inc. (NYSE: ARG) beat Q4 estimtates with record earnings and raised its guidance.
• Amkor Technology Inc. (NASDAQ: AMKR) beat Q1 expectations on strong demand for wireless.
• Anadarko Petroleum Corp. (NYSE: APC) reported strong Q1 results that beat Wall Street estimates.
• Barnes Group Inc. (NYSE: B) beat Q1 expectations on its "global reach" and raised its 2008 guidance.
• Coinstar Inc. (NASDAQ: CSTR) beat Q1 expectations and raised its full-year guidance.
• DirecTV Group Inc. (NASDAQ: DTV) posted better-than-expected results and announced share buybacks.
• Double-Take Software (NASDAQ: DBTK) beat Q1 expectations and raised its Q2 and 2008 guidance.
• Goldcorp Inc. (NYSE: GG) profits surged in the first quarter on record high gold prices.
• ICON plc (NASDAQ: ICLR) beat Q1 expectations and raised its full-year guidance.
• Marvel Entertainment Inc. (NYSE: MVL) easily beat Q1 estimates and raised its full-year guidance.
• Molson Coors Brewing Co. (NYSE: TAP) reported a surge in Q1 profits that beat Wall Street estimates.
• Panera Bread Co. (NASDAQ: PNRA) beat Q1 expectations and lifted its Q2 and 2008 forecasts.
• Symantec Corp. (NASDAQ: SYMC) beat Q4 expectations and raised its Q1 outlook.
• Transocean Inc. (NYSE: RIG) Q1 profits more than doubled due to soaring oil prices.
• Unilever (NYSE: UL) posted strong results, with revenues beating estimates for the first time in six years.
• UTStarcom Inc. (NASDAQ: UTSI) released a preliminary guidance well above expectations.
• Walt Disney Co. (NYSE: DIS) posted better-than-expected results on success of its theme parks.

Also, Jim Cramer is pleased with Anadarko and other, similar energy players; Anadarko hit an all-time high on Thursday. A lack of earnings guidance from Dr. Pepper Snapple Group Inc. (NYSE: DPS) had investors skittish as the company began trading this week. And Steven Mallas takes issue with Disney's dividends in light of the good earnings report.

Upcoming results to watch for include Sprint Nextel (NYSE: S), XM Satellite Radio Holdings (NASDAQ: XMSR), Sirius Satellite Radio (NASDAQ: SIRI), Electronic Arts (NASDAQ: ERTS), Whole Foods (NASDAQ: WFMI), Wal-Mart (NYSE: WMT), Deere & Co. (NYSE: DE), Toll Brothers (NYSE: TOL), Applied Materials (NASDAQ: AMAT), JC Penney (NYSE: JCP), Macy's (NYSE: M), Nordstrom (NYSE: JWN), Hewlett-Packard (NYSE: HPQ), Abercrombie & Fitch (NYSE: ANF).

Visit AOL Money & Finance for more earnings coverage.

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It did not take long for Marvel Entertainment (NYSE: MVL) to announce the intended 2010 release of Iron Man 2. This came one day after Marvel reported its latest earnings and the spectacularly successful weekend debut of its newest hit movie.

Having seen Iron Man with the cast and crew -- a prejudiced crowd if there ever was one -- I can tell you it is worth catching Iron Man on the big screen.

Meanwhile, if you are a Marvel comics fan, as I was growing up, and can't wait for the sequel, let's hope that the June 13 premiere of the The Incredible Hulk tides you over until 2010. And then, starting with Iron Man 2, you can look forward to the gates opening wide for the pantheon of Marvel Super Heroes.

In addition to the movies, product licensing should be strong for years as superheroes tend to make for great toys and other fare.

Today, Marvel is up $0.51 to $33.61.

Sheldon Liber is the CEO of a small private investment company and the principal for design and research at an architecture & planning firm. He writes the columns Chasing Value and Serious Money. Disclosure: I hold no position in MVL -- but I added it to my watch list.

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Even if you have not seen the new Iron Man movie yet you can be sure that there will be a sequel after 'Iron Man' Proves His Mettle this weekend topping all estimates of its potential at the box office passing $100 milion dollar mark and easily taking the top spot.

Earlier today Marvel Entertainment (NYSE: MVL) reported an increase in earnings from last years first quarter. Net income came in at $45.23 million, compared to $46.84 million last year. However, net earnings were up from $0.54 to $0.58 per share this year.

Last week after seeing a preview of Iron Man I posted Marvel's Iron Man will be HUGE! and it was. This is only the beginning because in addition to more of Iron Man filling the big screen we can look forward to more of Spider-Man, The Hulk, Wolverine, The Punisher 2, Magneto, Namor and many more in script development. Then there is the product licensing too, so it looks like the world will be looking simply Marvel-ous as Billy Chrystal liked saying way back when on Saturday night live.

The comnpany raised it's 2008 earnings per share estimate to the rangeof $1.35 to $1.55 from the $1.30 to $1.50 range. Marvel increased net income guidnace for the year to $104 to $122 million from $100 to $118 million.

The Stock is up $2.25 to $32.50 per share in morning trading.

UPDATE: MVL closed up $2.85 to $33.10.

Sheldon Liber is the CEO of a small private investment company and the principal for design and research at an architecture & planning firm. He writes the columns Chasing Value and Serious Money. Disclosure: I hold no position in MVL as of this writing -- but I am considering buying it

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