Stocks surge to records as Alphabet earnings and strong results lift market

Record highs on Wall Street came with a clear message for households: strong earnings can lift retirement accounts quickly, but they do not lower mortgage rates or erase geopolitical risk overnight. The S&P 500 rose 1% Thursday to 7,209.01, the Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 1.6% to 49,652.14 and the Nasdaq composite added 0.9% to 24,892.31, finishing April with the best monthly run for major U.S. indexes in more than five years.

The surge was driven by corporate profits, not by a calmer world. Alphabet helped lead the move after reporting first-quarter revenue of $109.9 billion, up 22% from a year earlier, with Google Cloud topping $20 billion and growing 63%. The company also said it expected 2026 capital spending to reach as much as $190 billion, a sign that the artificial intelligence race and cloud buildout are still demanding huge investment. Alphabet’s size gave the results extra force: the stock accounted for more than 5% of the S&P 500 and nearly 7% of the Nasdaq, so its advance amplified the market’s gains.

Caterpillar added to the bullish tone, with shares reportedly jumping about 10% after strong results. That mattered beyond one industrial name because it suggested the rally was not confined to a handful of technology giants. Investors were still rewarding companies that could deliver solid profits and confident guidance, even as markets watched energy prices swing sharply.

Those swings were real. Brent crude briefly climbed above $126 a barrel as stalled U.S.-Iran talks raised doubts about reopening the Strait of Hormuz, then quickly retreated. The market’s ability to look past that jump and close higher showed how much weight earnings had over fear. It also showed that record stock prices can coexist with a fragile global backdrop.

For savers, the late-April rally means the value of stock-heavy 401(k)s likely improved, especially for anyone indexed to the S&P 500 or Nasdaq. But a record close is still only a paper gain unless shares are sold, and the benefit is uneven because many households hold far less stock than the headlines imply. For borrowers, the rally does not automatically change loan costs. Mortgage rates, auto loans and credit-card rates are driven more by the Federal Reserve, Treasury yields and credit conditions than by a new high in the S&P 500.

The broader month was the real story. The S&P 500 gained 10.4% in April, its best month since November 2020, while the Nasdaq rose 15.3%, its strongest monthly gain since April 2020. The question now is whether earnings strength, led by Alphabet and reinforced by companies such as Caterpillar, is durable enough to keep supporting stocks once the market moves beyond the month’s headline-setting rally.