After three straight years of double-digit gains, U.S. stocks enter 2026 with strategists saying profit growth and the path for interest rates will decide whether the rally can extend. For another year of outsized returns, markets need “everything firing on all cylinders,” said Sam Stovall, chief investment strategist at CFRA, who put his end-2026 target for the S&P 500 at 7,400, about 8% above current levels. Tajinder Dhillon, head of earnings research at LSEG, said S&P 500 earnings are projected to rise more than 15% in 2026 after about 13% in 2025, while some banks such as Deutsche Bank have flagged double-digit upside even as they warn that heavy AI spending and Fed leadership uncertainty could test investor confidence. Reuters
