Analysis: Spotlight falls on earnings season in Ireland and US

Each quarter, every quoted US company provides results and updated guidance which is honed in on by analysts and investors to provide a gauge as to how the company is performing and how the outlook for the remainder of the year compares with the prior view.

It may seem perverse for a management team to be tasked with running large international firms in addition to ensuring that they are able to meet quarterly estimates of analysts, but the market can be brutal in its treatment of companies that miss forecasts, even slight misses.

Likewise, small beats to guidance can result in significant moves higher in the share price.