Target, FOMC Minutes: What to Watch on Wall Street November 19th

On Wednesday, November 19th more major retailers are scheduled to post their financial results. Target Corp (TGT) is reporting its third quarter earnings before the market opens. Sales and traffic have been in a slump lately, with the customer visits down for seven straight quarters, which could be the case again this quarter. Also, Target has been losing ground to popular ecommerce sites like Amazon.com Inc (AMZN), where their products can also be found. Also, we watch for earnings from home improvement retailer Lowe's Cos. (LOW), just a day after its competitor Home Depot (HD) topped third quarter earnings estimates, as well as office supplies company Staples (SPLS), all reporting before the opening bell. On the economic calendar, we note U.S. housing starts and the FOMC meeting minutes.