This earnings season, corporate America will get closer to the return of earnings growth—which is likely in the first quarter of 2021. We probably will have another decline in profits for third quarter 2020, though potentially only about half as big as last quarter’s. And we will undoubtedly hear more about uncertainty—both COVID-19 and election-related. We also highlight three things investors can watch this earnings season.

Moving in The Right Direction

How investors evaluate this earnings season will depend on their perspectives. We are likely to get a much smaller year-over-year decline in S&

Index Performance

S&P 500 Index: 3.7%

Dow Jones Industrial Average: 3.3 %

Nasdaq Composite: 4.6%

US and International Equities

The S&P 500 Index posted its best week in more than three months, boosted by renewed stimulus talks and the potential for targeted business-aid, and all major sectors finished in the green. Energy, after struggling the past month, was the best performing sector. Materials, utilities, and industrials were also among the sector leaders. Growth and value performed in-line, though small caps stole the show with the Russell 2000 posting a more than 6% gain.

“T

In the recent LPL Market Signals video, LPL Financial Chief Market Strategist Ryan Detrick, Equity Strategist Jeff Buchbinder and Asset Allocation Strategist Barry Gilbert discussed the upcoming election, looking at it from all different angles, and more, including:

• The latest on the stimulus bill

• Whether technology is in trouble under a Blue Wave

• How you should invest if former Vice President Biden wins

• How you should invest if President Trump wins

• Some of our favorite election charts

You can watch the full discussion below and directly from our YouTube channel. Please be sure to subscribe

Stimulus talks in Washington, DC, are getting a lot of attention from investors—and for good reason. The midpoint of the two offers—roughly $1.6 trillion from the White House and $2.2 trillion from US House Democrats—is about 9% of last year’s US gross domestic product (source: Bureau of Labor Statistics). That’s a big deal in terms of potential impact on the economy and markets.

We see stock market performance playing a role in President Donald Trump’s election chances. Historically when stocks rise heading into elections, incumbents tend to get re-elected—although at the same time, rece