The +11.3% y-o-y revenue growth rate quoted above for Q1 ’26, is the strongest growth rate since Q3 ’22’s (and zero-interest-rate influenced) +11.7%.<\/p>\n
While COVID distorted all the SP 500 metrics (from Q1 ’20 through mid ’22), since we don’t have that monetary policy distortion today, the Q1 ’26 +11.3% expected growth rate compares more favorably to the decade from 2010 to 2019.<\/p>\n
To give readers a benchmark, the “average” revenue growth rate for the SP 500 from Q4 ’12 through Q4 ’19 was just 3.2%.<\/p>\n
Outside of Covid, I couldn’t find any quarters that saw SP 500 revenue grow at an 11% y-o-y rate.<\/p>\n
Here’s how the sectors ranked in terms of revenue growth for Q1 ’26 thus far:<\/p>\n
- \n
- Tech:<\/strong><\/em> +30.3%<\/li>\n
- Utilities:<\/strong><\/em> +13.7%<\/li>\n
- Communication Services:<\/strong><\/em> +13.6%<\/li>\n
- Real Estate:<\/strong><\/em> +11.7% (somewhat surprising)<\/li>\n
- Basic Materials:<\/strong><\/em> +10.8%<\/li>\n
- Financials:<\/strong><\/em> +9.6%<\/li>\n
- Consumer Disc:<\/strong><\/em> +9.5%<\/li>\n
- Industrials:<\/strong><\/em> +8.8%<\/li>\n
- Health Care:<\/strong> <\/em>+7%<\/li>\n
- Consumer Staples:<\/strong> <\/em>+7.5%<\/li>\n
- Energy:<\/strong> <\/em>+4.3% (The Iran conflict was just one month of Q1 ’26). Energy revenue growth for Q2 ’26 as of today is expected at +24.8%.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
From early April ’26 through Friday May 29th, ’26, expected technology sector revenue was just 3%, from 27% on April 10, to 30.3% today.<\/p>\n
Maybe more interesting is that the utility sector was expecting +8.3% on April 10th, but as of May 29th, utility sector revenue growth was 13.7%. That’s the biggest delta in terms of revenue growth for the 11 SP 500 sectors.<\/p>\n
Technology’s +30.3% revenue growth for Q1 ’26 is the highest rate of growth for tech – even including Covid – since Q4 ’12. (This blog began tracking this data separately in Q4 ’12.)<\/p>\n
Quick summary:<\/strong><\/em> Everyone talks SP 500 earnings, including this blog, fewer talk revenue growth. Quick question for readers: which do you think is the more important metric, EPS or revenue growth ? Actually, I’d probably answer operating income or what the sell-side refers to as “EBIT”, but without revenue, that train doesn’t run.<\/p>\n
The blog post linked above from mid-April, ’26 talked about comparing the President’s two tax cut plans, i.e. the Tax Cuts & Jobs Act (TCJA) and the One Big Beautiful Bill (OBBB), and both instances saw SP 500 revenue jump sharply. The quarters around TC&JA, saw much better than average revenue growth, than the rest of the decade.<\/p>\n
This move in tech in ’26 is largely AI driven but a favorable tax environment doesn’t hurt.<\/p>\n
- Utilities:<\/strong><\/em> +13.7%<\/li>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/fundamentalis.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/SP500revenuegrowthbyqtrfor2026-155x300.png\")
<\/a><\/p>\n