The S&P 500 and Nasdaq reached record closing highs on Friday, with the S&P 500 gaining 20.46 points to end at 7,229.47 points and the Nasdaq Composite advancing 217.67 points to 25,109.98. According to The Economic Times, both indexes logged their sixth consecutive weekly advances, marking their longest run of weekly gains since October 2024. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 155.67 points to 49,496.47, while tech strength put the Nasdaq out front during the session. At the open, the S&P 500 rose 25.5 points to 7,234.54, while the Nasdaq Composite gained 85.5 points to 24,977.79, as reported by Motilal Oswal.
The earnings season delivered exceptional results, with analysts now seeing aggregate first-quarter earnings growth of 27.8% year-on-year, according to LSEG I/B/E/S data reported by The Economic Times. This represents an 11.7 percentage point increase from where the estimate stood a week ago and marks the biggest earnings growth since the fourth quarter of 2021. Of the 314 companies that have posted results, 83% have beaten earnings estimates, and 78% reported better-than-expected revenues. As reported by The Economic Times, the reporting companies accounted for more than two-fifths of the S&P 500's total market capitalization during this earnings-heavy week.
Despite historical challenges, analysts remain optimistic about continued momentum. According to The Economic Times, Ryan Detrick, chief market strategist at Carson Group, noted that "today's action is really the cherry on top of another solid week for investors as earnings season continues to come in stronger than expected." The second-best April for the S&P 500 since 1950 has set a positive tone for the market. However, as reported by The Economic Times, the stock market embarks on what is historically a weak six-month stretch from May to October, with the S&P 500 gaining an average of about 2% during this period since 1945 through April 2026.
Cboe Global Markets led S&P 500 gainers with a 9.64% surge to 329.02, followed by Datadog at 7.16% to 141.65 and Zoom Communications at 6.91% to 103.86. On the downside, Clorox declined 10.07% to 86.73, while LKQ fell 9.10% to 28.71. According to The Economic Times, Apple shares advanced after the company provided a solid sales forecast, touting strong demand for its flagship iPhone 17 and the MacBook Neo. Atlassian shares surged after the enterprise software firm hiked its forecast, with peers Salesforce and ServiceNow also gaining ground. Roblox shares tumbled 24% after the company cut its annual bookings forecast, while Reddit surged 15% on strong quarterly revenue outlook.
Energy markets showed mixed signals with crude oil prices easing after Iran was reported to have submitted a fresh proposal for negotiations with Washington. As reported by The Economic Times, progress toward a peaceful resolution to the U.S.-Iranian conflict appeared to be gaining momentum, with Brent crude futures falling 1.47% to $108.78 per barrel and West Texas Intermediate dropping 3.24% to $101.67. However, Exxon Mobil's quarterly profit was hit by Middle East disruptions, while Chevron beat earnings expectations but overall profit marked its lowest level in five years. U.S. natural gas futures edged up 1% to a fresh three-week high on reduced output and near-record LNG exports, according to Motilal Oswal.
