The stock market is at record highs heading into peak earnings week, with Apple (AAPL), Microsoft, Meta Platforms, Google and Amazon all on tap. The Federal Reserve is expected to cut rates for a second straight meeting. President Donald Trump is set to meet President Xi Jinping amid trade tensions.
Capital spending plans from Microsoft (MSFT), Meta Platforms (META), Amazon.com (AMZN) and Google parent Alphabet (GOOGL) will be hugely important for the AI boom, which is leading the stock market rally and overall economy.
Dozens of other notable companies also will be reporting.
Tesla Leads Stocks To Watch
The stock market remains volatile, but the major indexes are at all-time highs. Investors should be looking for stocks in buy zones or setting up, but be judicious about adding exposure. Tesla (TSLA), Snowflake (SNOW), GE Aerospace (GEV), TechnipFMC (FTI) and TJX Cos. (TJX) all fit that bill. Tesla, GE, and TechnipFMC have just reported earnings, while Snowflake and TJX are weeks away from their next quarterly release.
Stock Market At Highs But Huge Earnings, Fed Meeting, Trump-Xi Ahead
Fed Set To Cut Rates Again
The Fed is a lock to cut its key interest rate by another quarter-point on Wednesday, with the policy statement due at 2 p.m. ET. Chairman Jerome Powell’s 2:30 p.m. news conference may signal whether a further rate cut on Dec. 10 is a sure bet following the September CPI report. There’s a strong chance the Fed also will announce an end to quantitative tightening, the shrinking of its balance sheet by up to $5 billion in Treasuries and $35 billion in mortgage securities per month. Policymakers could decide to reinvest maturing mortgage securities in Treasuries. That expectation may have helped bring down the 10-year Treasury yield.
The rest of the economic calendar is bare due to the ongoing government shutdown, and its bite is set to worsen over the coming week. Numerous states are warning that Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits are set to be turned off.
Trump-Xi Meeting
Trump and Xi are scheduled to meet at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Forum (APEC) in South Korea, which runs Oct. 31-Nov. 1. Investors are hoping for a deal, or at least a cease-fire, to let Trump scrap or push back an extra 100% China tariff set to kick in on Nov. 1. That threatened tariff followed China’s stricter curbs on rare earths and key EV battery components.
A new round of China trade talks, including Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, got underway in Malaysia on Friday and are set to run through Monday.
Tesla Earnings Call Didn’t Mention This One Word Again
Microsoft Azure Sales In Focus
Microsoft (MSFT) will report fiscal first-quarter results late Wednesday. Analysts polled by FactSet expect EPS to climb 11% to $3.66 with revenue up 15% to $75.4 billion. The Azure cloud computing business will be a key focus area as will its Copilot AI services. Wall Street expects Azure revenue growth of 38% year over year. For the December quarter, analysts are looking for EPS to climb 18% with sales up 15% to $80 billion.
Apple Seen Getting iPhone Lift
Apple (AAPL) will post its fiscal fourth-quarter results late Thursday. Wall Street expects Apple to earn $1.77 a share, up 8% year over year, on sales of $102 billion, up 7.5%. Fiscal Q4 includes the first couple of weeks of sales for the Apple iPhone 17 series smartphones. For the December quarter, fiscal Q1 for Apple, analysts are forecasting earnings of $2.53 a share, up 5.5%, on sales of $131.4 billion, up nearly 6%.
Is AI Boosting Google’s Search Ads?
Google-parent Alphabet (GOOGL) reports late on Oct. 29. Analysts expect Q3 EPS to rise 8% to $2.28 with revenue climbing 13% to $99.9 billion. With a beat, Google could top $100 billion in revenue for the first time. The impact of generative artificial intelligence on the search advertising business remains a key issue. Google began deploying AI Overviews in the U.S. in mid-2024, with conversational summaries topping links for many search queries. Wall Street analysts expect the cloud business to turn in 29% revenue growth. Analysts will look for commentary from Google CFO Anat Ashkenazi on cost cutting and hiring trends amid a shift to AI-based software coding.
Amazon Web Services In Focus
Amazon.com (AMZN) reports late Thursday, with analysts forecasting Q3 earnings rising 10% to $1.57 per share, with revenue up 12% to $177.85 billion. After a lackluster Q2 compared to rivals Microsoft and Google, Amazon’s cloud business will be in focus. Wall Street is forecasting AWS sales of $32.4 billion, up 18% year over year. Meanwhile, CEO Andy Jassy’s commentary will be parsed for clues about what impact tariffs are having on Amazon’s massive e-commerce operations, including prices. Amazon’s guidance for the holiday quarter will also be closely watched.
Meta Platforms Due With Spending Key
Meta Platforms (META) will report third-quarter results late Wednesday. Analysts expect the Facebook parent to report an 11% EPS gain to $6.69 per share while sales increase 22% to $49.4 billion. Analysts are forecasting continued strength for advertising sales from Facebook and Instagram. But investors will be listening for updates on the costs of CEO Mark Zuckerberg’s vision of developing cutting-edge AI capabilities. Meta has previously told investors it expects to spend between $66 billion and $72 billion on capital expenditures this year. Earlier this month, the viral rise of OpenAI’s Sora AI-generated video app weighed on shares of Meta, as it presented a potential competitor.
Hard Driving Stocks On Tap
Hard-disk drive rivals Western Digital (WDC) and Seagate Technology (STX) are set to report, as excitement about AI data center demand has powered triple-digit rallies for both stocks. Seagate will publish results late Tuesday. Analysts are looking for a 52% increase in adjusted earnings to $2.40 per share. Sales are seen rising 17% to $2.55 billion. Western Digital goes late Thursday, with analysts expecting adjusted EPS of $1.59 per share. Sales are projected to come in at $2.83 billion. Western Digital completed a spinoff of its Sandisk (SNDK) flash memory business earlier this year, making year-over-year comparisons imprecise. But analysts forecast hard-disk drive revenue increased 17% year over year for the September-ended quarter, according to FactSet.
Software Stocks On Tap
ServiceNow (NOW) reports Q3 earnings on Oct. 28. Analysts expect the enterprise software maker to report EPS of $4.26, up 14% from a year earlier, with revenue growing 20% to $3.355 billion. Worries over ServiceNow’s exposure to federal government purchases have pressured the stock in 2025. The software maker is still in the early stages of monetizing AI. Atlassian (TEAM) reports fiscal Q1 earnings on Oct. 30. Analysts estimate EPS of 84 cents, up 9%, with revenue rising 18% to $1.402 billion. Cloudflare (NET) reports Q3 earnings on Oct. 30. Analysts estimate EPS of 23 cents, up 16%, with revenue climbing 27% to $544.6 million. Cloudflare works to speed up and provide security for web applications. NET shares are moving toward a buy point.
Aerospace Earnings
Aerospace firms continue to roll out results. FTAI Aviation (FTAI), a provider of engines, parts and maintenance services, reports Monday. Components manufacturer Howmet Aerospace (HWM) and defense contractor L3Harris (LHX) are on tap Thursday. FactSet expects FTAI will report a 59% increase in earnings on a 41% jump in revenue. FTAI stock is near record highs within a short consolidation. Analysts predict a 21% EPS increase for Howmet on 11% revenue growth. HWM stock is in a buy zone, above a 193.26 buy point following a Sept. 23 breakout. LHX stock climbed in a buy zone after announcing a South Korea contract. FactSet expects earnings to decline 23% while revenue rises 7%.
Visa, Mastercard Charge Up Results
The two credit card giants will both report earnings next week. Visa (V) will report fiscal fourth-quarter results on Tuesday night, with analysts expecting EPS up 16% to $2.71 as revenue climbs 9% to $10.62 billion. Mastercard (MA) will release Q3 figures early Wednesday. Earnings should advance 11% to $4.32 a share with revenue up 16% to $8.54 billion. Analysts will want to see if consumer spending remains robust. Both stocks are in the bottom half of lengthy flat bases.
Oil Majors Set To Parade Earnings
Exxon Mobil (XOM) and Chevron (CVX) report third-quarter earnings early Friday. Chevron and Exxon Mobil are forecast to continue their trend of quarterly year-over-year earnings declines, with analysts predicting Exxon profit falling 5% while Chevron EPS is expected to sink 32%, according to FactSet. Lagging U.S. oil prices, which are down 19% this year, have hit the two companies. XOM and CVX have traded sideways for the better part of three years.
Big Pharma Earnings
Novartis (NVS), Eli Lilly (LLY), Merck (MRK) and AbbVie (ABBV) will report their third-quarter results this coming week. Investors will be watching closely to hear their plans for entering drug-pricing deals with the Trump administration to stave off the possibility of a 100% tariff on pharmaceutical imports. The week kicks off with Novartis before the open on Tuesday. Analysts call for 11% earnings growth to $2.29 a share and $13.9 billion in sales, up 8%. Eli Lilly and Merck are both due to post their earnings reports early Thursday. For Lilly, the Street is watching for strong growth from tirzepatide-based products Mounjaro and Zepbound. Mounjaro, the diabetes drug, is expected to generate $5.45 billion in sales, growing 75%. Weight-loss drug Zepbound is projected to bring in nearly $3.5 billion in sales, up a whopping 178% year over year. For Merck, the key drug to watch is Keytruda. Keytruda sales are expected to increase 10% to almost $8.2 billion, nearly half of total revenue. Early Friday, AbbVie is expected to report $15.58 billion in sales, with much of that coming from immunology drugs Skyrizi and Rinvoq. But analysts project a 41% decline in earnings.
Biogen, Alnylam Earnings Due
Biotech behemoths Biogen (BIIB) and Alnylam Pharmaceuticals (ALNY) will report Q3 results early Thursday. Analysts expect Biogen to come in with adjusted profit of $3.87 a share and $2.34 billion in sales, dipping 5% each. The Street is keeping a close eye on Biogen’s Friedreich’s ataxia drug Skyclarys. While small at a projected $140 million, sales could grow a bullish 37%. Alnylam, whose stock recently broke out, is forecast to earn 57 cents per share, flipping from a year-earlier loss of 87 cents per share, with sales up nearly 92% to $960 million.
In Brief
EBay (EBAY) will report third-quarter results Wednesday, as shares near a new breakout as part of a strong 2025 advance. Analysts are looking for a 12% rise in adjusted earnings to $1.33 per share, according to FactSet. Sales are seen rising 6% to $2.73 billion. EBay has leaned on AI tools and a focus on “enthusiast buyers” to accelerate sales growth.
GeneDx (WGS) is due to report its third-quarter earnings before the market opens Tuesday. Analysts call for the diagnostics company to earn 42 cents a share, minus some items, on $104.6 million in sales. Earnings would skyrocket 950% year over year, as sales climb nearly 37%.
Guardant Health (GH) will report its third-quarter earnings early Wednesday. The cancer-screening player is projected to lose 79 cents per share and report $235.6 million in sales. Losses would narrow slightly year over year, while sales rise 23%.
PayPal (PYPL) reports Q3 earnings on Oct. 28. Analysts estimate that the digital payments firm will report flat EPS with revenue rising 5% to $8.235 billion.
Cadence Design Systems (CDNS) is expected to report a 9% EPS gain to $1.79 late Monday. Analysts expect sales for the maker of electronic design software to climb 9% to $1.32 billion.
Celestica (CLS) will post Q3 results late Monday. Wall Street expects the contract electronics manufacturer to earn $1.49 a share, up 43% year over year, on sales of $3.04 billion, up 21.5%.
Quanta Services (PWR) will report early Thursday, with earnings expected to rise 19.5% to $3.25 per share, up 19.5%, and sales increasing 14% to $7.404 billion. Analysts see a Q3 backlog of $29.372 billion for Quanta, which specializes in building electric plants and provides power grid services. Investors will be looking for comments on data-center growth and other drivers.
Please follow Ed Carson on Threads at @edcarson1971 and X/Twitter at @IBD_ECarson for stock market updates and more.
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