The early Q1 results from the big banks like JPMorgan JPM, Wells Fargo WFC and operators from other industries like Delta Air Lines DAL reinforce the favorable expectations that have been in place in recent months. This is despite the elevated macro uncertainty resulting from the Middle East conflict that thankfully is starting to ease already.
In short, the earnings picture was very strong at the start of the year and the early Q1 results validate those expectations, despite the geopolitical overhang.
Through Friday, April 17th, we have seen Q1 results from 48 S&P 500 members or 9.6% of the index’s total membership. Total earnings for these 48 index members are up +29.3% from the same period last year on +12.4% higher revenues, with 79.2% beating EPS estimates and an equal proportion beating revenue estimates.
This is a better showing from these 48 index members relative to what we have seen from the group in other recent periods. The outperformance is particularly notable on the revenues side, both in terms of the growth pace as well as the beats percentage. In fact, the Q1 revenue beats percentage of 79.2% is towards the high end of the high-low range over the preceding 20 quarters (5 years) for this group of S&P 500 members, as the comparison charts below show.
Looking at Q1 as a whole, combining the actual results from the 48 S&P 500 members that have reported with estimates for the still-to-come companies, total earnings are currently on track to be up +14.1% from the same period last year. But if the trends we have seen already remain in place through the end of this reporting cycle, the final Q1 growth pace will most likely exceed the +15.8% we saw in 2025 Q3 and be the highest in the post-Covid period.
For more details on the overall earnings picture, please check out our weekly Earnings Trends report here >>>Q1 Earnings Season Starts Off Strong
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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).