{"id":593,"date":"2026-08-26T13:37:28","date_gmt":"2026-08-26T13:37:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/advisor.wellington-altus.ca\/mpwealthadvisory\/?p=593"},"modified":"2026-08-26T00:54:48","modified_gmt":"2026-08-26T00:54:48","slug":"corporate-earnings-are-having-a-blowout-quarter-and-the-market-is-taking-notice","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/advisor.wellington-altus.ca\/mpwealthadvisory\/2026\/08\/26\/corporate-earnings-are-having-a-blowout-quarter-and-the-market-is-taking-notice\/","title":{"rendered":"Corporate earnings are having a blowout quarter, and the market is taking notice"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">If\u00a0you&#8217;ve\u00a0checked your portfolio<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0in August,\u00a0you&#8217;<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">ve\u00a0probably noticed\u00a0the market has had some\u00a0very good\u00a0days recently.\u00a0That&#8217;s\u00a0not an accident. Behind the headlines about record highs is a much simpler story: American companies are making a lot more money than expected, and investors are rewarding them for it.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;335559738&quot;:240,&quot;335559739&quot;:240}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">A Standout Earnings Season<\/span><\/b><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;134245418&quot;:false,&quot;134245529&quot;:false,&quot;335559738&quot;:360,&quot;335559739&quot;:80}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Second-quarter earnings season is now largely in the books, and the numbers have been remarkable.\u00a0With the vast majority of S&amp;P 500 companies having reported, the index is on pace\u00a0<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">for blended year-over-year earnings growth in the neighbourhood of 50%. According to FactSet, this is the fastest pace of profit growth since the p<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">ost-pandemic rebound of 2021.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;335559738&quot;:240,&quot;335559739&quot;:240}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Even when you strip out a couple of unusually large one-time gains at Alphabet and Amazon, underlying growth still comes in above 30%, marking the second straight quarter of growth above 25% and the seventh consecutive quarter of double-digit earnings gains.\u00a0That&#8217;s\u00a0not a one-quarter\u00a0fluke;\u00a0it&#8217;s\u00a0a sustained trend of companies consistently beating what analysts expected of them.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;335559738&quot;:240,&quot;335559739&quot;:240}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Why Earnings Move Markets<\/span><\/b><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;134245418&quot;:false,&quot;134245529&quot;:false,&quot;335559738&quot;:360,&quot;335559739&quot;:80}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Stock prices are, at their core, a reflection of expected future profits.\u00a0When companies report earnings that\u00a0come\u00a0meaningfully above what analysts and investors had priced in, it forces a reassessment:<\/span><span data-contrast=\"none\">\u00a0<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">to put it simply, a company that is earning more should be worth more.<\/span>\u00a0<span data-contrast=\"auto\">Multiply that dynamic across hundreds of large companies reporting strong results in the same window, and you get the kind of broad-based rally\u00a0we&#8217;ve\u00a0seen recently.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;335559738&quot;:240,&quot;335559739&quot;:240}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Earlier this month, the S&amp;P 500 posted one of its best days of the year, climbing nearly 2% to close above 7,700 for the first time, a fresh all-time high that took out its previous peak from June. The Dow closed above 54,000 for the first time ever, and the Nasdaq surged as well. Strong earnings from major companies, combined with easing geopolitical tensions and a pullback in oil prices, gave investors several reasons to buy at once.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;335559738&quot;:240,&quot;335559739&quot;:240}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">What&#8217;s Driving the Strength<\/span><\/b><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;134245418&quot;:false,&quot;134245529&quot;:false,&quot;335559738&quot;:360,&quot;335559739&quot;:80}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">A few themes stand out this earnings season:<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;335559738&quot;:240,&quot;335559739&quot;:240}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li data-leveltext=\"\u25cf\" data-font=\"\" data-listid=\"4\" data-list-defn-props=\"{&quot;335552541&quot;:1,&quot;335559685&quot;:720,&quot;335559991&quot;:360,&quot;469769242&quot;:[8226],&quot;469777803&quot;:&quot;left&quot;,&quot;469777804&quot;:&quot;\u25cf&quot;,&quot;469777815&quot;:&quot;multilevel&quot;}\" data-aria-posinset=\"1\" data-aria-level=\"1\"><b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Technology and artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure spending<\/span><\/b><span data-contrast=\"auto\"> has been a major contributor, with several large tech companies posting outsized beats tied to cloud computing and AI\u00a0demand.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;335559738&quot;:240}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li data-leveltext=\"\u25cf\" data-font=\"\" data-listid=\"4\" data-list-defn-props=\"{&quot;335552541&quot;:1,&quot;335559685&quot;:720,&quot;335559991&quot;:360,&quot;469769242&quot;:[8226],&quot;469777803&quot;:&quot;left&quot;,&quot;469777804&quot;:&quot;\u25cf&quot;,&quot;469777815&quot;:&quot;multilevel&quot;}\" data-aria-posinset=\"2\" data-aria-level=\"1\"><b>Energy<\/b> companies benefited from higher oil prices earlier in the quarter, while easing energy costs more recently have helped consumer-facing businesses.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li data-leveltext=\"\u25cf\" data-font=\"\" data-listid=\"4\" data-list-defn-props=\"{&quot;335552541&quot;:1,&quot;335559685&quot;:720,&quot;335559991&quot;:360,&quot;469769242&quot;:[8226],&quot;469777803&quot;:&quot;left&quot;,&quot;469777804&quot;:&quot;\u25cf&quot;,&quot;469777815&quot;:&quot;multilevel&quot;}\" data-aria-posinset=\"3\" data-aria-level=\"1\"><b>Broadening participation<\/b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u2014while mega-cap tech has led the charge, strength has also shown in sectors like communication services and select industrials, suggesting the rally isn&#8217;t resting entirely on a handful of stocks.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;335559739&quot;:240}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Things to Consider\u00a0<\/span><\/b><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;134245418&quot;:false,&quot;134245529&quot;:false,&quot;335559738&quot;:360,&quot;335559739&quot;:80}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">It&#8217;s\u00a0worth remembering that strong earnings and a rising market\u00a0don&#8217;t\u00a0eliminate\u00a0risk. Expectations are now quite high heading into the back half of the year, and history shows that August through October tends to be a seasonally softer stretch for stocks. Valuations in some corners of the market, particularly AI-related names, have become a more frequent topic of debate among strategists.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;335559738&quot;:240,&quot;335559739&quot;:240}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">None of this means the rally is unfounded. Real earnings growth, not just optimism, is doing the heavy lifting this year. But as always, a diversified, long-term approach\u00a0remains\u00a0the best way to\u00a0participate\u00a0in strong periods like this one while staying protected against the inevitable bumps along the way.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;335559738&quot;:240,&quot;335559739&quot;:240}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">If\u00a0you&#8217;d\u00a0like to talk through what this earnings season means for your specific portfolio and goals,\u00a0we&#8217;re\u00a0always happy to have that conversation.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;335559738&quot;:240,&quot;335559739&quot;:240}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b><i><span data-contrast=\"auto\">This commentary is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice. Please speak with your advisor to discuss how these themes apply to your individual financial situation.<\/span><\/i><\/b><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;335559739&quot;:100}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>If\u00a0you&#8217;ve\u00a0checked your portfolio\u00a0in August,\u00a0you&#8217;ve\u00a0probably noticed\u00a0the market has had some\u00a0very good\u00a0days recently.\u00a0That&#8217;s\u00a0not an accident. Behind the headlines about record highs is a much simpler story: American companies are making a lot more money than expected, and investors are rewarding them for it.\u00a0 A Standout Earnings Season\u00a0 Second-quarter earnings season is now largely in the books, and [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":327,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_oasis_is_in_workflow":0,"_oasis_original":0,"_oasis_task_priority":"2normal","_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[14],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-593","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-commentary"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/advisor.wellington-altus.ca\/mpwealthadvisory\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/593","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/advisor.wellington-altus.ca\/mpwealthadvisory\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/advisor.wellington-altus.ca\/mpwealthadvisory\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/advisor.wellington-altus.ca\/mpwealthadvisory\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/327"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/advisor.wellington-altus.ca\/mpwealthadvisory\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=593"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/advisor.wellington-altus.ca\/mpwealthadvisory\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/593\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":613,"href":"https:\/\/advisor.wellington-altus.ca\/mpwealthadvisory\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/593\/revisions\/613"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/advisor.wellington-altus.ca\/mpwealthadvisory\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=593"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/advisor.wellington-altus.ca\/mpwealthadvisory\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=593"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/advisor.wellington-altus.ca\/mpwealthadvisory\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=593"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}