S&P 500 sales growth hits nearly 5-year high, driven by energy firms

S&P 500 companies just delivered their strongest sales performance in nearly five years. Blended revenue growth for Q2 2026 landed between 14.1% and 15.0% year-over-year, the highest mark since Q4 2021, when the index posted 16.1% growth. The energy sector did a lot of the heavy lifting. Energy companies reported revenue growth of roughly 31.7% and an earnings surge of 135.3% compared to the same period last year. Exxon Mobil and Chevron stood out as the sector’s biggest contributors, riding a wave of elevated oil prices that persisted through most of the quarter. What’s driving the numbers Geopolitical tensions, particularly conflicts involving Iran, kept oil prices stubbornly high during Q2. That translated directly into fatter top lines for energy producers. Technology companies posted revenue growth of around 35.6%, leading all sectors in percentage terms. The tech gains were driven largely by structural demand rather than cyclical luck, with AI infrastructure and data center buildouts continuing to create a reliable revenue engine for the sector’s biggest players. All eleven S&P 500 sectors recorded positive revenue growth during the quarter. Five of them, led by energ...