Midday Market Intelligence: earnings...

Research evidence excerpt

Midday Market Intelligence: earnings...

Equity Research

9 July 2026 | 1:50PM EDT

US stocks are trading higher Thursday as rates and oil seek out an angle of repose Chris Hussey

+1(212)902-7564 |

amidst still-elevated Middle East tensions, and 2Q26 earnings season officially kicks chris.hussey@gs.com

Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC

off with results from PEP this morning.

Sarah Herr

+1(212)357-0094 | sarah.herr@gs.com

drive stocks? Kshitij Garg

Tech stocks continue to bounce around as investors debate how far and how fast the +1(212)934-7434Goldman Sachs India| kshitij.garg@gs.comSPL

data center build-out trade can last. But with rates and oil moving so much this week,

investor attention is also understandably on economically sensitive stocks. And the

pro-cyclicals — Industrials, Financials, Real Estate — are also moving higher today.

Investors may be positioning around a higher-for-longer rates environment. And

they may also be positioning ahead of earnings season.

And 2Q26 earnings season began with a fizz today as PEP was the first major

company to report results (see Bonnie Herzog’s “PEP: First Take: Q2 results in-line

with tempered expectations; FY26 guidance affirmed - Maintain Buy”). PEP delivered

in-line EPS of $2.20, up only 4% yoy. For the S&P 500, however, EPS growth

expectations are far more ambitious — consensus is forecasting yoy EPS growth of

22% for the index in 2Q26, writes Ben Snider in a Jun-26 Kickstart note, “S&P 500 Q2

2026 earnings season preview.” Gleaning insight into the health of the consumer,

however, is difficult to do from PEP earnings — a company that is battling the

headwinds of a structural shift in consumer food and beverage consumption away

from sodas and salty snacks (PEP also owns Fritos) in favor of healthier alternatives