FactSet Earnings Insight - 30-October

FactSet Senior Earnings Analyst John Butters provides an analysis of the third quarter earnings season for the S&P 500. Overall, 64% of the companies in the S&P 500 have reported actual results for Q3 2020 to date, with 86% reporting actual EPS above estimates. During each corporate earnings season, it is not unusual for companies to comment on domestic or international events that may have an impact on earnings for future quarters. Given the uncertainty of the upcoming presidential election in the U.S., we examined how many companies in the S&P 500 have commented on the election during their earnings conference calls for the third quarter. More S&P 500 have commented on the election during their third quarter earnings conference calls this year compared to the previous presidential election in 2016.