The latest data on the U.S. job market, along with a look at the finances of several top tech, media and pharmaceutical firms, are in store for investors this week. The jobs report for January comes as Federal Reserve officials are closely watching the labor market for signs of weakness. The central bank kept interest rates on hold last week. Investors will also be focused on earnings from several top tech firms, including Amazon and Google parent Alphabet. Reports from AMD, Qualcomm and Palantir are likely to provide insight into the artificial intelligence (AI) industry. Reports from Disney, Uber, Toyota and a slew of pharmaceutical firms are also on tap.
Jobs Data Will Highlight the Strength of the Labor Market
The U.S. jobs report for January is due Friday. The labor market in December showed more signs of weakening; while the unemployment rate edged lower at the end of the year, the 50,000 jobs that employers reported adding was lower than economists anticipated. Federal Reserve officials will be watching the labor market after the central bank voted last week to keep interest rates unchanged, citing elevated inflation risks, even as hiring has slowed. Some Fed officials have said that rates should continue to be lowered to shore up the job market.
Investors will also get a look at consumer sentiment in February, while consumer credit levels and Purchasing Managers Index survey results for the manufacturing and services sector will also be in focus.
Alphabet, Amazon, Disney on Tap for Earnings Reports
Alphabet’s earnings come after the search giant surpassed the $100 billion revenue milestone in its most recent report. Amazon also posted strong revenue gains in the prior quarter. The online retailer recently announced another round of layoffs. The report from Advanced Micro Devices comes amid brisk sales of data center chips, fanning bullish sentiment among analysts following the chipmaker. While investors continue to focus on the opportunity offered by the AI trade, some observers are warning of inflated valuations for top tech companies.
Investors will be watching Disney’s report for more details on its direct-to-consumer segment (including its streaming services), which grew 8% in the prior quarter but came in below expectations. Pharmaceutical firms will also be in focus, including Wednesday’s report from Eli Lilly, which has seen its shares rise on optimism over its weight loss drugs. Rival weight loss drugmaker Novo Nordisk will also report earnings this week, along with Amgen, Merck, AbbVie and Novartis.
What analysts are saying about U.S. stocks
Morgan Stanley: “The sharp reversal last week in the S&P/gold ratio gives an early indication that confidence may be restored. Near-term, further upside may come from falling gold amid tighter liquidity considerations, while longer- term upside is likely driven by productivity gains on the back of a capex cycle. Consistent with this view, markets are rewarding high capex-to-sales firms and improving earnings momentum. Amid these dynamics, we see a rotation from commodity cyclicals back to consumer cyclicals in the near/intermediate term.”
Evercore ISI: “For stocks, the selloff in Parabolic Gold and Silver – after frantic, meme-like trading – is not a material headwind, instead putting to rest fear of building systemic risk and turning focus back to equities. 4 year into the Bull market, stocks “should” be more volatile. But rather than predicting the end of the trend, such volatility, hallmark of all strong Bull Markets, presents opportunity.”
Goldman Sachs: “The outlook for S&P 500 EPS growth in 2026 remains solid. Of the 50 companies offering 2026 EPS guidance, 54% of firms have guided above consensus compared with the historical average of 40%. Consensus estimates for S&P 500 2026 EPS have been roughly unchanged since the start of the season. We expect +12% S&P 500 EPS growth in 2026.”
JPMorgan: “We believe that growth-policy tradeoff will remain positive, underpinning risk-on equity performance. On one side, activity momentum is staying resilient, with a potential for laggards to catch up. Consumer spending is robust, driven by a positive wealth effect, tax cuts, and also potentially better confidence and labour markets down the line. Corporate capex should be helped by robust earnings delivery, which appears to be accelerating and broadening. The initial Q4 results are encouraging in this regard, with leading indicators pointing to further pickup.”
RBC Capital Markets: “What we’ve read in reporting season so far hasn’t changed our constructive outlook on the U.S. equity market this year. It does reinforce our view that stock market returns in 2026 will likely be anchored to and reflective of earnings growth, with little in the way of moves in the P/E multiples.”