---
title: "U.S. Stock Market Outlook | Futures for the three major indices rise together, four major tech giants show divergent stock prices after earnings, Apple to announce financial report after hours"
type: "News"
locale: "en"
url: "https://longbridge.com/en/news/284774522.md"
description: "On April 30th, the three major U.S. stock index futures all rose, with Dow futures up 0.69%, S&P 500 futures up 0.55%, and Nasdaq futures up 0.74%. The four major tech giants, Microsoft, Amazon, Meta, and Google, raised their capital expenditure expectations, predicting that capital expenditures will reach $72.5 billion by 2026, primarily for AI data center equipment. Google expects capital expenditures to be between $180 billion and $190 billion in 2026, Microsoft expects $190 billion, Amazon is close to $200 billion, and Meta has raised its forecast to between $125 billion and $145 billion"
datetime: "2026-04-30T12:48:03.000Z"
locales:
  - [zh-CN](https://longbridge.com/zh-CN/news/284774522.md)
  - [en](https://longbridge.com/en/news/284774522.md)
  - [zh-HK](https://longbridge.com/zh-HK/news/284774522.md)
---

# U.S. Stock Market Outlook | Futures for the three major indices rise together, four major tech giants show divergent stock prices after earnings, Apple to announce financial report after hours

## Pre-Market Market Trends

1.  As of April 30 (Thursday), U.S. stock index futures are all up before the market opens. As of the time of writing, Dow futures are up 0.69%, S&P 500 futures are up 0.55%, and Nasdaq futures are up 0.74%.

![截屏 2026-04-30 下午 8.32.12.png](https://imageproxy.pbkrs.com/https://img.zhitongcaijing.com/image/20260430/1777552746967620.png?x-oss-process=image/auto-orient,1/interlace,1/resize,w_1440,h_1440/quality,q_95/format,jpg)

1.  As of the time of writing, the German DAX index is up 1.04%, the UK FTSE 100 index is up 1.64%, the French CAC40 index is up 0.14%, and the Euro Stoxx 50 index is up 0.56%.

![截屏 2026-04-30 下午 8.32.27.png](https://imageproxy.pbkrs.com/https://img.zhitongcaijing.com/image/20260430/1777552752194549.png?x-oss-process=image/auto-orient,1/interlace,1/resize,w_1440,h_1440/quality,q_95/format,jpg)

1.  As of the time of writing, WTI crude oil is down 1.85%, priced at $104.90 per barrel. Brent crude oil is down 0.92%, priced at $109.42 per barrel.

![截屏 2026-04-30 下午 8.32.51.png](https://imageproxy.pbkrs.com/https://img.zhitongcaijing.com/image/20260430/1777552759545733.png?x-oss-process=image/auto-orient,1/interlace,1/resize,w_1440,h_1440/quality,q_95/format,jpg)

## Market News

**AI Investment Consensus Intensifies: The Capital Expenditures of Four Major U.S. Tech Giants Rise Again.** Against the backdrop of sustained demand for artificial intelligence (AI) and rising costs for chips and data centers, four of the "Seven Giants" of U.S. stocks that released earnings reports on Wednesday did not signal a reduction in investment but instead raised their capital expenditure expectations. Data shows that Microsoft, Amazon, Meta, and Google have increased their capital expenditures to $725 billion this year—primarily for AI data center equipment, exceeding the market expectation of $670 billion prior to the earnings release. Specifically, Google stated that it expects its full-year capital expenditures for 2026 to be between $180 billion and $190 billion, with both the upper and lower limits raised by $5 billion from previous estimates. The company also anticipates a "significant increase" in capital expenditures for 2027. Microsoft similarly indicated that it expects its capital expenditures to reach $190 billion in 2026, with about $25 billion attributed to rising component prices. This figure far exceeds the market average expectation of $117.5 billion. Amazon stated that its capital expenditure plans are "generally consistent" with the expectations given in January this year. Previously, Amazon had projected that its capital expenditures would approach $200 billion in 2026, representing a 56% increase from 2025. Meta raised its full-year capital expenditure expectation for 2026 to between $125 billion and $145 billion, with both the upper and lower limits increased by $10 billion from previous estimates. Meta indicated that the upward adjustment in capital expenditure expectations is mainly due to anticipated increases in component prices this year, as well as increased data center costs to support future capacity **Multiple economic data released in the United States.** The number of initial jobless claims in the U.S. for the week ending April 25 was recorded at 189,000, the lowest since the week of September 24, 2022. The year-on-year core PCE price index for March in the U.S. was 3.2%, expected at 3.20%, and the previous value was 3.00%; the month-on-month core PCE price index for March was 0.3%, expected at 0.30%, and the previous value was revised from 0.40% to 0.3%; the month-on-month personal spending in the U.S. for March was 0.9%, expected at 0.9%, and the previous value was revised from 0.50% to 0.6%. The preliminary annualized quarter-on-quarter GDP growth rate for the first quarter in the U.S. was 2%, expected at 2.3%, and the previous value was 0.50%.

**Interest rate decision hides power signals: Analysts say FOMC's record divergence warns Walsh that "he cannot fully control the situation."** Dario Perkins of TS Lombard stated that the Federal Reserve's decision to keep interest rates unchanged on Wednesday should be viewed as a warning to Walsh from the institution, rather than a signal that current Chairman Powell has lost control of the central bank. The FOMC, responsible for setting interest rates, maintained the policy rate at 3.50% to 3.75% for the third consecutive meeting, citing uncertainty in the U.S. economy and global macro outlook. This meeting saw an unusual voting divergence, with four members voting against the decision—an unprecedented number in the committee's history. In response to this divergence, Perkins dismissed what he called the "foolish view" that Powell has lost control. Instead, he argued that the "smart interpretation" is that the committee is signaling to incoming Chairman Walsh that he will not be able to fully control the situation after taking the helm. Perkins likened the Fed's action to the Bank of England's "strategic voting," where decision-makers sometimes guide market expectations by voting against before leadership changes or policy shifts.

**War inflation erodes consumption, U.S. Q1 GDP growth may be under pressure, government and AI investment become a "lifeline."** Due to inflation impacting consumers triggered by the conflict in the Middle East, U.S. economic growth by 2026 may increasingly rely on government and corporate spending. A report released on Thursday is expected to show that this trend had begun to take shape in the first quarter of this year, even before the war's effects became apparent. Economists surveyed expect the annualized GDP growth rate for the first quarter to reach 2.3%, while consumer spending growth may only be 1.4%. After the federal government set a record for the longest shutdown in history at the end of 2025, government spending rebounded significantly, which may boost overall GDP figures. Forecasters believe that if the conflict continues, increased defense spending will support economic growth. At the same time, corporate investment data may reflect a sustained surge in spending related to artificial intelligence (AI) development.

**The shadow of renewed conflict in the Middle East looms, oil prices hit the highest point since June 2022.** According to the latest reports, the U.S. military will report to Trump on the latest plan to strike Iran on April 30, Eastern Time. Reports indicate that the U.S. Central Command's new plan is to launch a "swift and powerful" strike against Iran, likely targeting Iranian infrastructure. It is reported that the U.S. Central Command has applied to deploy "Dark Eagle" hypersonic missiles to the Middle East. If approved, this would be the first time the U.S. deploys hypersonic missiles in actual combat, potentially to target ballistic missile launch facilities deep within Iran Analysts point out that although the U.S. and Iran have been in a temporary ceasefire since April 9, this action by the U.S. indicates that it is still preparing for possible military strikes in the future. Currently, both the U.S. and Iran are using the ceasefire period to reorganize their military capabilities, and future conflicts may become more intense. On Thursday, Brent crude oil futures for June briefly rose above $126 per barrel, reaching a four-year high.

**"New Bond King" Gundlach is bearish on gold: below $4,000 is the opportunity, beware of inflation returning to the "40s."** Gundlach stated that he would not be surprised if gold falls below $4,000 per ounce before regaining upward momentum. He mentioned, "I have previously advised investors to hold commodities indices and allocate a small portion to gold directly, but I do not recommend doing so now. I believe there will be a cheaper entry point." Gundlach pointed out that after gold prices surged vertically from $3,500, they peaked around $5,500. Meanwhile, Gundlach believes the bond market is signaling that the duration of high inflation will exceed previous expectations, stating, "The bond market has begun to digest the expectation that higher inflation will last longer, which we believe is entirely reasonable." He predicts that due to persistently high oil prices, the overall Consumer Price Index (CPI) could remain around 3% by the end of 2026 and may reach the "40s" in the coming months.

## Individual Stock News

**Alphabet (GOOGL.US) Q1 delivers a shocking earnings report: revenue growth of 22%, Google Cloud surges 63% to $20 billion, $70 billion buyback and 5% dividend increase to reward shareholders.** The financial report shows that Alphabet achieved a dual leap in revenue and profit in the first quarter, with total revenue climbing to $109.9 billion, a year-on-year increase of 22%, significantly surpassing the market's previous forecast of $107.2 billion. Net profit surged 81% year-on-year to $62.6 billion. The performance of Google Cloud officially announces its entry into a mature profit phase, with quarterly revenue first reaching the $20 billion mark, a year-on-year growth rate of 63.4%, far exceeding the $12.26 billion from the same period last year. Market analysis indicates that the explosion in Google Cloud is mainly driven by strong demand from enterprise customers for generative AI infrastructure and customized TPU chips. More forward-looking, the company disclosed that its cloud business backlog has nearly doubled from approximately $240 billion in the previous quarter to $462 billion, demonstrating the strong commercial appeal and customer stickiness of its AI solutions in long-cycle markets. Additionally, to reward investors, the company's board announced a 5% increase in the quarterly dividend to $0.22 per share and authorized a stock buyback plan of up to $70 billion. As of the time of writing, Alphabet's stock rose over 7% in pre-market trading on Thursday.

**Azure cloud computing revenue surged over 40% + $190 billion to boost AI infrastructure! Microsoft's (MSFT.US) performance may not be explosive, but it is enough to sustain the AI super bull market.** For the third quarter of the fiscal year ending March 31, 2026, total revenue was approximately $82.886 billion, a year-on-year increase of 18%, significantly exceeding market expectations. Operating profit was approximately $38.398 billion, a year-on-year increase of 20%; Net profit reached $31.778 billion, a year-on-year increase of 23%; diluted EPS was $4.27, also up 23%. These figures indicate that Microsoft has not experienced a fundamental slowdown; rather, it remains one of the few global tech giants capable of maintaining high double-digit revenue growth and high profit margins on a nearly $100 billion base. Excluding the impact of exchange rate fluctuations, the Azure cloud computing division, closely related to AI revenue generation/monetization pathways, achieved a 39% revenue growth in Q3 of fiscal year 2026. However, this figure is only slightly above analysts' average estimate of 38% growth, which is still insufficient to quell investors' strong concerns about the still small and unclear prospects of AI-driven revenue. Additionally, there are currently 20 million customers paying for the company's flagship AI application, Copilot, up from 15 million in the previous quarter. As of the time of publication, Microsoft shares fell nearly 2% in pre-market trading on Thursday.

**Amazon (AMZN.US) Q1 revenue and net profit both exceeded expectations! AI gamble pays off: AWS surged 28%, reaching a three-year high, with AI budget targeting $200 billion this year.** Amazon's spending in the first quarter to expand data center capacity exceeded expectations, driving its cloud business to achieve the fastest sales growth in over three years. The financial report showed that Amazon's Q1 revenue reached $181.52 billion, a year-on-year increase of 16.6%, exceeding expectations by $4.35 billion; earnings per share were $2.78, surpassing expectations by $1.13. Sales for Amazon Web Services (AWS) in the first three months of 2026 amounted to $37.6 billion, a year-on-year increase of 28%. Advertising revenue grew by 24%, reaching $17.2 billion, exceeding the average expectation of $16.9 billion. The company's target spending for this year is approximately $200 billion—a 56% increase compared to 2025. In Q1, property and equipment spending surged to $44.2 billion, exceeding analysts' estimates. Due to these expenditures, Amazon's rolling free cash flow over the past 12 months fell from $25.9 billion a year ago to $1.2 billion by the end of the quarter. As of the time of publication, Amazon shares rose over 2% in pre-market trading on Thursday.

**AI gamble raises concerns! Meta (META.US) Q1 performance exceeded expectations but faced sell-off: capital expenditure raised to $145 billion, advertising moat struggles under multiple pressures.** Despite exceeding market expectations, Meta's stock price plummeted in after-hours trading due to a significant upward revision of its full-year capital expenditure forecast, compounded by increasing legal regulatory pressures and unclear prospects for AI investments, highlighting market concerns about its aggressive AI strategy. The financial report showed that Meta achieved revenue of $56.31 billion in Q1, a year-on-year increase of 33%, surpassing the market expectation of $55.45 billion. Adjusted earnings per share reached $7.31, while the average analyst expectation was $6.79. What truly shook the market was Meta's substantial revision of its spending plans. The company raised its full-year capital expenditure forecast for 2026 from the previous $115 billion to $135 billion, to a new range of $125 billion to $145 billion, with a median increase of about 8%, far exceeding analysts' expectations As of the time of writing, Meta's stock fell over 9% in pre-market trading on Thursday.

**Q2 earnings report releases two positive signals, Qualcomm (QCOM.US) surges after earnings.** Qualcomm released two positive signals during its quarterly earnings announcement, namely progress in its data center business and the expectation that the Chinese smartphone market will bottom out in the third quarter and subsequently recover with quarter-on-quarter growth, boosting investor confidence. The earnings report showed that Qualcomm's adjusted earnings per share for Q2 were $2.65, higher than analysts' expectations of $2.55; revenue decreased by 3% year-on-year to approximately $10.6 billion, which was in line with market expectations. The company expects Q3 revenue to be between $9.2 billion and $10 billion, although the upper limit of the guidance is still below the average analyst expectation of $10.2 billion, but the market is clearly more focused on the recovery signals themselves. The company expects adjusted earnings per share for the quarter to be between $2.10 and $2.30, also lower than the market expectation of $2.38. To further boost investor confidence, Qualcomm also announced a stock repurchase plan of up to $20 billion. As of the time of writing, Qualcomm's stock rose over 10% in pre-market trading on Thursday.

**Strong demand for high-priced pickups! Commodity costs surged by $2 billion, Ford Motor Company (F.US) still raises full-year profit guidance against the trend.** Ford Motor Company raised its full-year profit expectations, citing strong demand for high-margin pickups and SUVs, but also warned that unexpected increases in raw material costs would put pressure on earnings. The earnings report showed that excluding credit income, Ford's Q1 revenue was $39.82 billion, a year-on-year increase of 6.4%, exceeding expectations by $999 million; adjusted earnings per share were $0.66, surpassing expectations of $0.47. The company expects its earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) for the year to be between $8.5 billion and $10.5 billion, an increase of $500 million from previous forecasts. However, Ford did not equate the increase in its full-year profit expectations with the significantly better-than-expected performance in Q1, indicating a cautious outlook for the coming year due to the rise in energy and raw material prices driven by the Iran war. Ford expects profits to be hit by $2 billion due to rising prices of raw materials such as steel and aluminum, a figure that is double the previous forecast, aligning with the views of its competitor General Motors. As of the time of writing, Ford's stock fell over 5% in pre-market trading on Thursday.

**Emerging markets "snatching soap" to hedge against weak North American demand, Unilever (UL.US) Q1 sales surge, exceeding expectations.** Thanks to strong purchases of daily necessities such as Dove soap and cleaning products by consumers in emerging markets, the company successfully offset the adverse effects of weak demand in the U.S. market, with Q1 sales growth exceeding market expectations. The earnings report showed that the underlying sales in Q1 increased by 3.8% year-on-year, surpassing analysts' forecast of 3.7%. More notably, this round of growth was primarily driven by an increase in sales volume: Q1 underlying sales volume grew by 2.9%, far exceeding analysts' expectation of 1.8%, while prices only rose moderately by 0.9%, demonstrating growth resilience driven by actual demand. The core driver of Q1 performance came from strong performance in emerging markets, with underlying sales growth of 5.7%, where sales volume growth reached 4.2%, becoming a decisive factor for the company's overall performance exceeding expectations. However, the overall underlying sales growth in developed markets was only 1.0% Despite a year-on-year sales growth of 2.1% in North America, this growth rate has significantly slowed compared to the same period last year. As of the time of writing, Unilever's stock rose over 2% in pre-market trading on Thursday.

**The AI infrastructure boom ignites PCB! American PCB giant TTM (TTMI.US) reports record profits.** TTM Technologies is a leader in the defense and AI PCB sectors, contributing approximately 30% of PCB manufacturing capacity in North America. The financial report shows that the company's Q1 sales increased by 30% year-on-year to $846 million, setting a historical high; Non-GAAP net profit reached $80.1 million, with diluted EPS of $0.75, a significant increase of 50% from $0.50 year-on-year, also setting a quarterly record. The book-to-bill ratio reached 1.41, indicating that order strength is significantly higher than the pace of shipment confirmations. The book-to-bill ratio is a key industry metric that measures the relationship between orders and shipments, widely used in sectors such as semiconductors, electronics manufacturing, and CXO (contract research and manufacturing organizations) to assess market demand conditions.

## Important Economic Data and Event Forecast

Beijing time 21:45 U.S. April Chicago PMI

## Earnings Forecast

Friday morning: Apple (AAPL.US), Western Digital (WDC.US), Roku (ROKU.US)

Friday pre-market: ExxonMobil (XOM.US), Chevron (CVX.US)

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