With 95% of the companies in the S&P 500 reporting earnings to date for Q2 2016, 71% have reported earnings above the mean estimate and 54% have reported sales above the mean estimate. In addition to mean earnings and sales estimates, what other notable movements have occurred in the S&P this earnings season?
For Q2 2016, the blended earnings decline for the S&P 500 is -3.2%. The second quarter marks the first time the index has recorded five consecutive quarters of year-over-year declines in earnings since Q3 2008 through Q3 2009.
Related: S&P 500 May See Declines for 2016
On June 30, the estimated earnings decline for Q2 2016 was -5.5%. Seven sectors have higher growth rates today (compared to June 30) due to upside earnings surprises, led by the Information Technology and Consumer Discretionary sectors.
For Q3 2016, 72 S&P 500 companies have issued negative EPS guidance and 30 S&P 500 companies have issued positive EPS guidance.
The forward 12-month P/E ratio for the S&P 500 is 17.1. This P/E ratio is based on Thursday’s closing price (2187.02) and forward 12-month EPS estimate ($128.46).