Analysts expect fourth-quarter earnings for S&P 500 companies to rise 8.8% on a year-over-year basis, according to data compiled by LSEG. Technology companies expect continuous AI to go from strength to strength.
“Solid US economic growth and Federal Reserve rate cuts have boosted corporate earnings and profit margins, boosting US stocks and making us overweight. We think that will continue in Q4 earnings results starting this week,” said strategists at BlackRock Investment Institute.
The earnings gap between the “Magnificent Seven” tech giants and the rest of the market is expected to narrow, they added.
“Tech has been a big part of earnings growth in recent years, but value stocks tend to have very solid earnings. Industrials, financials and other cyclical value names can show earnings improvements that justify economic growth,” said Ryan Detrick, chief market strategist at Carson Group.
Earnings season officially kicked off Tuesday with JPMorgan Chase beating analysts’ estimates for fourth-quarter profit.
“We see 9 of the 11 sectors reporting positive growth in Q4, more than 6 in Q3 and 2 in Q2,” Deutsche Bank analysts wrote in a note, pointing to broad profit growth among S&P 500 companies.
On the other hand, sectors catering to cost-sensitive shoppers may face renewed pressure as value-conscious shoppers tighten their belts, making sectors such as consumer discretionary the biggest returns of the season, Deutsche Bank and Citi analysts noted.
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