U.S. stocks ended higher on Friday, rounding out a strong week as investors assessed ongoing developments in global trade and saw renewed strength in major tech shares. The S&P 500 rose 0.74% to close at 5,525.21, while the Nasdaq Composite gained 1.26% to finish at 17,282.94. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) lagged behind, ending just 20 points higher, or 0.05%, at 40,113.50. All three indices advanced over the week, marking their second positive finish in the past three. The S&P 500 posted a 4.6% weekly gain, and the Nasdaq surged 6.7%. The Dow underperformed on a relative basis but still added 2.5% for the week. The S&P 500 still remains in the red for April, down 1.5%, while the Dow has dropped 4.5%. The Nasdaq is now modestly in the green for the month.
This week, investors are bracing for a busy stretch ahead, with market direction likely influenced by a packed earnings calendar featuring results from tech heavyweights Apple (AAPL) and Microsoft (MSFT).
Uncertainty around global trade policy also continues to hang over sentiment. In addition to corporate earnings, upcoming macroeconomic releases—including the first estimate of first-quarter GDP, the monthly jobs report, and the latest PCE inflation data—could shape expectations around the economic outlook and monetary policy.
Markets will be watching to see if the recent rebound signals that the equity damage from tariff concerns has run its course. “Regarding the employment report, our headline (+125k forecast vs. +228k previously) and private (+125k vs. +209k) payroll forecasts reflect payback from strong March hiring – particularly within the leisure/hospitality and retail sectors,” said Deutsche Bank strategists. “Recall that the signal from nonfarm payroll gains tends to get muddied in March and April due to the shifting Easter holiday and spring break dates for schools, as well as weather factors that can all impact early spring hiring,” they added. The bank expects the unemployment rate to remain unchanged at 4.2%.
Packed earnings week: Microsoft, Apple, Amazon, Meta to report
Roughly 180 companies in the S&P 500—accounting for more than 40% of the index’s total market capitalization—are expected to report earnings in the coming week, according to UBS. The spotlight will be on tech giants Apple, Microsoft, Amazon.com Inc (AMZN), and Meta Platforms (META). These four members of the so-called “Magnificent Seven” have struggled to maintain momentum in 2025 after delivering outsized gains over the past two years.
So far, earnings season has been better than expected. With over a third of S&P 500 companies having reported, first-quarter profits are tracking a 9.7% year-over-year increase, up from the 8% growth forecast at the start of April, based on data from LSEG IBES. In addition to the tech heavyweights, this week investors will also be watching results from ExxonMobil (XOM), Coca-Cola (KO), and McDonald’s (MCD), which are due to report in what’s shaping up to be one of the busiest stretches of the earnings season.
What analysts are saying about U.S. stocks
Evercore ISI: “SPX will remain rangebound between 5,100-5,600 until the economy pulls back from the Point of No Return – April’s Bear Market Bottom is not a “V” bottom. Favor de-risked AI centric “Fallen Angels” sectors Comm. Svcs., Cons. Disc., Info. Tech. Buy Quant “Fallen Angels” stocks with low Momentum, high Buybacks , sell “Gravity Defiers” stocks with high Momentum, low Buybacks.”
RBC Capital Markets: “We also like to keep tabs on earnings sentiment by tracking the rate of upward EPS estimate revisions to consensus estimates for the S&P 500. This is another bottom-up gauge and has been at an important crossroads. After hovering in the low 40-50% range for most of calendar 1Q, this indicator has been slipping in recent weeks and is now at 33% on the four-week average. On a weekly, unadjusted basis, this stat came in at 28.5% last week, in line with the lows of 2012 and 2016. Typically, for earnings to be derisked, we need to see this stat get to around or a little below 30% in a non-crisis backdrop, and 10-20% in a more dire scenario. If this indicator were to fall much lower, we think it would be reasonable to expect it to head toward that 10-20% range, putting more pressure on stock prices short term. But for the moment, it’s sitting where we’d expect it to bottom out if the worst-case scenario is avoided.”
JPMorgan: “We continue to think that we would be buyers of risk sometime in 2H, but would wait for the hard dataflow to potentially close the gap with soft data first, for the earnings projections to be reset, for weak guidances to be out of the way, and for the tariffs seesaw to settle over the next few months. The behaviour of US bond yields and of the USD, in addition to the Fed independence/credibility outlook, remain the wild cards.”
Morgan Stanley: “While a modest/brief overshoot of 5500 can persist very short-term, a sustained break above the next level of resistance (5600- 5650) is likely dependent on developments that have yet to come to fruition: (1) a tariff deal with China that brings down the effective rate materially; (2) a more dovish Fed; (3) back-end rates below 4% without recessionary data; and (4) a clear rebound in earnings revisions. Bottom line, until we see clearer risk-on shifts in these factors, range trading is likely to continue.”