NEW YORK, May 1, 2026, 19:01 (EDT)
- Nasdaq 100 futures edged higher in early after-hours action. Dow futures moved the other way, slipping. S&P 500 and Nasdaq both finished the regular session at record highs.
- It’s not only rate optimism driving the rally—earnings are showing muscle, too. LSEG data put S&P 500 first-quarter profit growth at 27.8%.
- Oil prices, inflation cues, and next week’s jobs figures—all three are still the hurdles for this move.
After markets wrapped up Friday, U.S. stock-index futures showed a mixed picture: Nasdaq 100 futures gained 0.68% and S&P 500 futures edged up just 0.06%, but Dow futures slipped 0.48% in the early after-hours read. Futures trade beyond regular market hours, letting investors gauge sentiment ahead of the next session.
After the S&P 500 and Nasdaq set new records—powered by tech stocks and upbeat earnings—Wall Street opened May with solid footing. The Dow lagged, ending in the red, so the rally’s breadth didn’t quite match the headline highs.
That’s relevant as investors shift out of April’s rebound and into a market where optimism is already baked in. The S&P 500 closed at 7,230.12, gaining 0.3%. The Nasdaq advanced 0.9% to 25,114.44. The Dow, on the other hand, slipped 152.87 points, landing at 49,499.27.
Earnings have been carrying the load. LSEG analysts project S&P 500 companies will post first-quarter profit growth of 27.8% compared to a year ago, making it the biggest jump since Q4 2021, according to Reuters. “Stronger than expected” is how Ryan Detrick, chief market strategist at Carson Group, described this earnings season. Reuters
Apple jumped 3.3% as it laid out a bullish sales forecast and highlighted healthy demand for its iPhone 17 and MacBook Neo. Shares in Atlassian soared 29.6% on an upgraded annual outlook, while software names Salesforce and ServiceNow tacked on 4.1% and 3.2%.
Elsewhere, Roblox took a hard hit, sinking 18.3% after slashing its annual bookings outlook — bookings, essentially future sales in the pipeline. Reddit, for its part, soared 13.1% after projecting stronger revenue for the coming quarter.
eBay and GameStop shook up after-hours trading. The Wall Street Journal reported GameStop was putting together an offer for eBay, while Reuters noted eBay shares surged roughly 14% after the bell and GameStop climbed 4%. Both firms declined to comment to Reuters right away.
There’s less margin for error now. April saw U.S. factory activity growing, yet the Institute for Supply Management’s prices-paid index—closely eyed for inflation signals—jumped to a four-year high. Oil isn’t helping either, still weighing on the outlook even after Friday’s drop.
Edward Jones senior global investment strategist Angelo Kourkafas described investors as caught between “fast-rising profits” and the drag from “upward pressures on oil prices and bond yields.” For LPL Financial, chief equity strategist Jeff Buchbinder put the Middle East threat in sharper terms: “With each passing day, the economic risk grows.” Reuters
Looking ahead to next week, investors will get fresh employment figures, plus results from AMD, Palantir, and Disney. A robust jobs report might reinforce confidence in the economy—though that same strength could muddy the outlook for a looser Fed stance, especially if inflation proves persistent.
Just looking at the calendar doesn’t offer much reassurance. The old “sell in May” move? Ryan Detrick from Carson Group told Reuters it’s “hasn’t worked at all in the last decade.” Sam Stovall at CFRA pointed out that May-to-October stretches tend to lag, especially in midterm election years. Reuters
