Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.B -0.64%) announced record operating earnings of $47.4 billion, in 2024 results posted Saturday. The gain was largely driven by Berkshire's insurance business, with underwriting income up around $2.6 billion year over year.

Home Depot (HD -2.37%) will release fourth-quarter figures Tuesday. The DI recommendation faces another year of falling sales, after it met undemanding expectations in Q3.

• A forecast yield of 2.3%: The housing market drives much of Home Depot's business, and that's still tough. But it's cyclical, and an ageing housing stock should mean rising spending on improvements.
• "The Monthly Dividend Company": Known for providing monthly income, fellow Dividend Investor rec Realty Income (O 1.01%) also reports on Tuesday. After a Q3 revenue beat, the commercial real estate investment trust (REIT) raised its 2024 investment volume guidance to approximately $3.5 billion.

Wednesday brings a Q4 update from Salesforce (CRM -2.71%). The customer relationship management (CRM) specialist's digital assistant tools have helped boost net income 67% in the first three quarters.

• Up only 47% in last five years: Autodesk (ADSK -2.07%) posts Q4 earnings Thursday, after a Q3 beat and a small raise in full-year outlook. The company pins growth potential on its new transaction model.
• Eyes on inflation: January's Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) Price Index, due Friday, is expected to drop from 2.6% to 2.4% year over year. Core PCE – the Federal Reserve's favored inflation gauge, which excludes food and energy – is tipped to fall from 2.8% to 2.6%.

Is Microsoft's (MSFT -1.90%) appetite for big AI spend starting to wane as Alibaba (BABA 5.72%) ramps up its ambitions?

• Over capacity?: Analyst TD Cowan says Microsoft has started canceling leases for data center capacity in the U.S., totaling a capacity of "a couple of hundred megawatts." It claims the OpenAI backer is scaling back international plans.
• Targeting international partnerships: Alibaba plans to invest more than $53 billion in AI infrastructure over the next three years, including data centers. It highlights the company's growing AI leadership ambitions.