The promise of AI continues to lift the mega-cap tech stocks, driving the Nasdaq to an all-time high Friday, exceeding its last record in 2021. The tech-heavy index finished up 1.74% for the week, while the S & P 500 rose nearly 1%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.11%. This earnings season is winding down and it’s been a good one. Of the 97% of S & P 500 companies that have reported fourth-quarter earnings results, 73% reported an upside earnings surprise, while 64% reported better-than-expected revenue results, according to data from FactSet. The two portfolio stocks that reported earnings last week also didn’t disappoint. Discount retailer TJX Companies, which runs T.J. Maxx, Marshalls, and HomeGoods, beat on nearly every important metric , prompting us to raise our price target. Enterprise giant Salesforce also finished 2024 on a high note with an earnings beat — plus a surprise dividend. The big economic report of the week was the personal consumption expenditure (PCE) index on Thursday, the Federal Reserve’s preferred inflation gauge, which showed a rise of 0.4% in January, in line with expectations. Matching expectations was good enough for the bulls, as it points to further disinflation at both the headline and core levels. It was a big win for the central bank’s war on inflation, following a hotter-than-expected consumer and producer price index reports earlier in February. In the week ahead, we get earnings results from three more stocks in the portfolio, plus a few key economic reports. 1. All about the jobs. The big watcher this week is the February nonfarm payrolls report, out Friday before the bell. The market is feeling good after the favorable economic data last week. The monthly jobs report, while backward-looking, will provide some more clues on the health of the consumer and the forward path of inflation. Remember, buying power is a result of prices and wages. Higher wages mean the ability to absorb higher prices. Wall Street wants to…
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