By forecasting big gains in profits for this year, "managers are setting themselves up for disappointment".
ANALYSTS quickly responded by forecasting an additional $4 billion in write-downs on Merrill's portfolio.
Around the Yankees, this is mostly accomplished by forecasting dire consequences for every imaginable obstacle.
And some Democrats accused Mr. Bush of talking down the economy by forecasting the looming recession.
But he had made a reputation for himself by forecasting the recession in the early 1990's.
Sears, Roebuck, the largest department store chain, bucked the trend by forecasting first-quarter profit far below Wall Street estimates.
In November, H.P. surprised investors by forecasting that sales this year would rise to as much as $130 billion.
"I'm trained to save lives and it doesn't matter if they are Cuban, Chinese or American lives I'm saving by forecasting storms," he said.
He went even further down this road in an interview the week before with America's Fortune magazine by forecasting a postwar economic boom.
To value a company, they calculate an internal rate of return by forecasting the share price 10 years ahead, based on probable cash flow.
She calculates what a business is worth per share, what she calls a "central tendency of value," by forecasting a company's earnings for the next 3, 5 and 10 years.
