S&P 500 Earnings Surge 21% YoY, But Here's What's Slowing AI

In this episode of the Planned Solutions Podcast, the current boom in Artificial Intelligence (AI) investment has fueled stock market gains. However, these investments are based on high growth expectations and an eventual path to profitability for the largest AI companies. While AI software is inherently scalable, the hardware (data centers) required to support it is not as easy to scale. This could be the constraint that causes the AI growth rate to slow, extending the timeline to profitability, which could make these investments look less attractive. The S&P 500 earnings season has started out strong. With roughly 50% of companies having already reported, S&P 500 earnings for the first quarter are projected at $70.10, a 10.35% increase from the prior quarter and a 21.51% increase from the same quarter a year ago. These strong earnings are likely what is driving stock prices higher despite the recent geopolitical risks. Foreign stocks had a good run in 2025. This trend appeared to be poised to continue in 2026, with the foreign stock index strongly outperforming the US stock market for the first two months. However, with the start of the war with Iran, the US market has recovered to new highs, whereas foreign stocks have not performed as well. Now the return between US stocks and foreign stocks has converged, with foreign stocks having a slight edge this year. Plus, a look at the Planned Solutions Incorporated Office Bulletin Board - Chase, Shannon, Joel, and Daryl played in a golf tournament at Ancil Hoffman Golf Course supporting a local charity that provides activities for teens with mental development disorders. While we did not play our best, they did a great job putting on a good tournament to raise money for a good cause.Carter and Matt have survived their first tax season. As a reward, they have been promoted from the shared back office to their own offices with a window. This will also put them closer to the front of the office, which hopefully will make it easier to hear clients dropping in when some of the people normally up front are out of the office, away from their desk, or in the back working on compiling paperwork.To subscribe to the Personal Finance Review (the written form of all the content we discuss on the podcast), please e-mail ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠ ⁠ Planned Solutions, Inc.ADDRESS: 1130 Iron Point Road, Suite 170, Folsom, CA 95630 PHONE: ⁠(916) 361-0100⁠ or ⁠(800) 750-2111⁠E-MAIL: ⁠⁠[email protected]⁠m⁠ FAX: (916) 361-0191WEBSITE:⁠www.PlannedSolutions.com