BofA joins top bulls in outlook for S&P 500

Strategists boost earnings expectations tying BMO, Deutsche Bank.

The S&P 500 will deliver stronger-than-expected earnings in 2024, powered by resilient economic growth and artificial intelligence breakthroughs, according to Bank of America Corp. strategists, who are now among Wall Street’s most bullish profit forecasters.

The team including Ohsung Kwon and Savita Subramanian raised their earnings-per-share estimate to $250 from $235, tying with BMO Capital Markets and Deutsche Bank AG for the most optimistic outlook among strategists tracked by Bloomberg. BofA’s EPS target for 2025 is $275.

The beefed-up earnings outlook for this year follows a strong earnings reporting season and an upgrade by BofA economists of their expectations for US gross domestic product readings, the strategists wrote in a note. “2023 was a transition year for Corporate America, and companies have now adjusted to the new higher rate and tepid demand environment,” the strategists said.

They also observed “a potential virtuous cycle forming from AI investments.” Semiconductor companies and networking are the most obvious winners from this, but utilities and commodities are also among sectors to benefit from increased power usage and data centers, they said. “Productivity gains from AI and domestic investments are also a major tailwind.”

Subramanian last week raised her S&P 500 target to 5,400 to reflect stronger earnings growth, implying a gain of 5.5% from the previous close.