S&P 500 Returns – Strong vs. Weak Periods U.S. stocks tend to lose some of their edge over the summer, with May to October often lagging the stronger November to April period. Even so, seasonality is a guide, not a guarantee. Image: Real Investment Advice
S&P 500 Quarterly Net Profit Margin (ex. Financials & Utilities) Corporate America is delivering solid profits, and with margins set to climb in the coming quarters, the bullish case keeps gaining traction. It’s getting harder to argue against that trend. Image: Goldman Sachs Global Investment Research
Share of S&P 500 Company Quarter-Ahead EPS Guidance Above Consensus Estimates Strong earnings and confident forecasts are keeping corporate America bullish on near-term profits, adding fuel to already rich valuations. As long as companies deliver, investors are willing to look past rich pricing. Image: Goldman Sachs Global Investment Research
Share of Global Market Capitalization The U.S. accounts for just 4% of the world’s population, but it commands 63% of global equity value. Its innovation engine keeps pulling in foreign capital. Global markets, as ever, still move to an American beat. Image: Goldman Sachs Global Investment Research
S&P 500 Performance During the 1980-2000 and 2013-Current Secular Bull Markets The S&P 500 has been rising since March 2013, but age alone doesn’t call the top. The last secular bull market ran nearly two decades. If history is any guide, this one may still have further to go. Image: Carson Investment Research
Seasonality – S&P 500 Average Monthly Returns Since 1950 Since 1950, the S&P 500 has returned just 1.7% from May to October, versus more than 7% from November to April. When the market hits May near record highs, that already weak stretch has tended to get weaker. Image: Real Investment Advice
Number of S&P 500 Stocks Making New 52-Week Lows Above 20 The number of S&P 500 stocks hitting new 52-week lows is rising, rarely a healthy signal. In sustained bull markets, new lows tend to stay below 20. That is not the kind of breadth you want to see in a healthy uptrend. Image: Bloomberg
S&P 500 – Bull Markets That Made It To 100% At just 3.5 years old and already up more than 100%, the current bull market still looks like it has legs, leaving bears stuck watching from the sidelines. Image: Goldman Sachs Global Investment Research
Retail Gasoline Price Change Between February 23 and April 27, 2026 The Middle East conflict is sending fuel costs soaring across Asia, with gasoline prices in Southeast Asia up 37% since the war began. In the U.S., prices have surged 42%, a sharp rise that is hard to ignore. Image: J.P. Morgan Commodities Research
S&P 500 1-Month Forward Returns Based On Sentiment Indicator Level Goldman Sachs’ U.S. Equity Sentiment Indicator sits at 1.7, a reading historically linked to an average 0.4% decline in the S&P 500 over the next month. Image: Goldman Sachs Global Investment Research
S&P 500 Performance After >5% YTD After April Since 1972, when the S&P 500 has been up more than 5% heading into May, it has ended the year higher 92% of the time, with a median gain of 10%. No wonder the bulls like those odds. Image: Carson Investment Research