Earnings season for the first quarter of 2026 has officially kicked off, and while the bulk of the season will last for at least the next several weeks, analysts will get to see some key reports over the next few days (April 13-17).
Earnings reports provide a three-month snapshot into a company's performance. Management teams also typically use the reports as an opportunity to set up a conference call with Wall Street analysts to provide an update on the business and take questions.
The technical part of earnings season is the numbers themselves. Analysts who cover a stock all have their own projections for earnings and revenue, among many other line items. These estimates are averaged together to create a consensus. If a company reports numbers better than consensus, that's often a good sign; the reverse is true if results are below estimates.
Image source: Netflix.
Some management teams will also provide more near-term guidance, which is also weighed against consensus estimates. The conference calls provide investors with an opportunity to gauge sentiment and gain more insight into big company initiatives or projects.
While well over 100 companies will report earnings this week, here are three big ones to watch.
From banking to artificial intelligence to streaming
JPMorgan Chase (JPM 0.57%), the largest U.S. bank by assets, will report tomorrow before the market opens.
While the numbers are somewhat interesting here, at least if there is a big beat or miss on a certain line item, I think investors will be more focused on full-year guidance and broader insights into the economy.
NYSE: JPM
Key Data Points
JPMorgan reports full-year guidance for net interest income, expenses, and projected losses in the credit card portfolio. Any changes from last quarter could move the stock.
However, given concerns about the broader economy, investors will be equally interested in how the consumer is holding up and other segments of the economy.
On Thursday, April 16, both Taiwan Semiconductor (TSM +3.19%) and Netflix (NFLX 1.47%) will report.
Because Taiwan Semiconductor reports monthly revenue numbers, we already know that the chip manufacturer posted $35.6 billion in revenue, above Wall Street forecasts and a 35% year-over-year increase.
However, as the primary manufacture for Nvidia's most advanced semiconductor chips, investors in artificial intelligence stocks will be curious about overall demand, a key topic in the sector. Taiwan Semiconductor provides guidance for the following quarter's net revenue and gross and operating margins, so investors will certainly be interested in that, as well as any other comments touching on demand.
Netflix is coming off a tumultuous few months, during which it ultimately decided to back out of an intense bidding war over the company Warner Bros. That means the streaming giant is back to focusing on organic growth.
NASDAQ: NFLX
Key Data Points
Netflix just raised subscription prices on all of its plans, so investors will likely be interested to see what subscriber growth has been like and whether management increases its 2026 revenue guidance range of $50.7 billion to $51.7 billion.
Netflix is also trying to hit a $20 billion content budget in 2026, so I'm sure investors will want more details on this plan, as well as other initiatives at the company.
