The yellow line represents S&P 500 companies that have reported beating Q2 2025 estimates. Chart is for illustrative purposes only. Past performance is not necessarily an indication of future results.
Second quarter earnings season is winding down, and results have delighted many investors. More than 90% of S&P 500 Index companies have already reported and 82% beat estimates, the highest rate in four years. Once all data comes in, earnings are expected to have grown 11.7% compared to 4.9% projected at the end of June.1
Additionally, estimates for the full year have also improved; consensus estimates call for 10.2% annual earnings growth, up from 8.7% in June. Despite signs of potential weakness in the real economy and job market, earnings have been better than anticipated.2
Historically, August and September have been seasonally challenging months, suggesting we could see an increase in volatility in the near term, but the ongoing strength of earnings instills us with confidence in equity performance over the long term. We also remain positive on the artificial intelligence (AI) growth story, which bolstered the results of Magnificent Seven companies this past quarter. The innovation’s benefits are not only affecting technology companies; AI is driving margin expansion and productivity enhancements across many other sectors too, further supporting our constructive stance on the future outlook of the U.S. equity market.
1,2 Source: Bloomberg, August 2025.
The Magnificent 7 refers to a group of seven major technology stocks that have significantly influenced the market’s performance. This group includes Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, Broadcom, Meta Platforms, Microsoft, and NVIDIA. The S&P 500 Index tracks the 500 largest publicly traded companies representing about 80% of U.S. market capitalization. Investors cannot invest directly into any index.
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MARK-788922-2025-08-13
GU-686 - 13 January 2026