Don’t fight the earnings cycle! Will the U.S. stock market break 8,000 points this year?

According to Wind Trading Desk, Jefferies issued a clear warning in its latest research report dated September 14: 'Don’t fight the earnings cycle.' Driven by the dual engines of the AI investment frenzy and stronger-than-expected corporate earnings growth, the S&P 500 Index is projected to surge to 8,000 points by the end of this year (2026) and further reach 9,000 points in 2027. The report notes that although headwinds—including rising 10-year U.S. Treasury yields, persistent inflation, and the upcoming midterm elections—remain, corporate fundamentals will continue to be the core driver of returns. Jefferies’ central thesis is clear and compelling: resisting an earnings cycle delivering growth more than double the historical average is perilous. Moreover, Jefferies believes AI-driven earnings expansion is spreading beyond the 'Magnificent Seven' to broader markets, providing a more solid foundation for equities. Investors should focus on overweight sectors with robust earnings revisions and macroeconomic support—namely technology, financials, healthcare, and materials—and seize this rare super-cycle of earnings growth amid concerns over valuation compression.

How should we view the U.S. stock market’s performance on April 13, 2026 (U.S. Eastern Time)?

On Monday, all three major U.S. indices rose, with the Nasdaq Composite and the S&P 500 gaining over 1% each; the S&P 500 recovered all its year-to-date losses. Reports indicate that contacts between the U.S. and Iran are ongoing and 'making progress toward reaching an agreement.' At market close, the S&P 500 rose 1.02% to 6,886.24; the Nasdaq Composite gained 1.23% to 23,183.74; and the Dow Jones Industrial Average advanced 0.63% to 48,218.25. By market capitalization, at closing: NVIDIA rose 0.36%, Alphabet (Class A) rose 1.28%, Apple fell 0.49%, Microsoft rose 3.64%, Amazon rose 0.63%, TSMC fell 0.28%, Broadcom rose 2.21%, Meta rose 0.74%, and Tesla rose 0.99%. Credo Technology Group—a company specializing in optical interconnects—surged 12.35%, marking its second consecutive trading day with gains exceeding 10%. News broke that Jefferies initiated coverage of the company with a 'Buy' rating. In a report led by analyst Blayne Curtis, Jefferies stated: 'Active Electrical Cables (AECs) still have clear and sustained growth potential—driven both by AI computing demand and traditional general-purpose computing needs. Meanwhile, ZeroFlap optical interconnect technology (ZF Optics) could become a key variable diversifying the company’s product portfolio and revenue streams.' Analysts also noted that market concerns about 'copper interconnects becoming obsolete' or 'co-packaged optics (CPO) disrupting the company’s business' are significantly overstated. Furthermore, the market has virtually priced in none of the company’s potential opportunities—including ALC (an upgraded version of AEC) and the OmniConnect architecture platform. After hours, Credo Technology surged another 10%+. The company announced it would acquire DustPhotonics for $750 million in cash and approximately 0.92 million shares of its common stock. DustPhotonics, founded in 2017, is an Israeli leader in silicon photonics, specializing in high-speed optical interconnect solutions for next-generation data centers, artificial intelligence (AI), and high-performance computing. SanDisk—the storied 'meme stock' in the memory sector—jumped 11.83% on Monday, hitting a new all-time high; its year-to-date gain now exceeds 300%. Catalysts include its recent inclusion in the Nasdaq-100 Index and reports that the company is accelerating development of High-Bandwidth Flash (HBF). Micron Technology, Seagate, and Western Digital also posted gains. Intel—the CPU 'blue-chip'—continued its rally, rising over 4% and logging its first nine-day consecutive winning streak since 2023. A group of previously underperforming AI-related stocks and software names rebounded collectively—including Microsoft. Oracle soared 12.69%, Salesforce rose 4.76%, and Adobe gained 6.55%. Cybersecurity stocks CrowdStrike rose over 6%, and SentinelOne jumped 7.12%.

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