Stocks had their best month of the year and best October in six years. The S&P 500 Index gained 6.9%, as earnings once again came in stronger than expected especially considering supply chain disruptions and materials and labor shortages. With 55% of S&P 500 companies having reported, third quarter earnings are tracking to a 36.5% year-over-year increase, 9 percentage points above the October 1 consensus estimate.
 
The back and forth in Washington did little to scare stocks, as there is now hope taxes won’t be nearly as high as was feared just a few months ago.

Content in this material is for general information only and not intended to provide specific advice or recommendations for any individual. All performance referenced is historical and is no guarantee of future results. All indices are unmanaged and may not be invested into directly.

The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index is a capitalization weighted index of 500 stocks designed to measure performance of the broad domestic economy through changes in the aggregate market value of 500 stocks representing all major industries.