Alphabet Is the Largest Contributor to Second-Quarter S&P 500 Earnings Growth
Alphabet (GOOGL, GOOG) was by far the largest contributor to second-quarter earnings growth for the S&P 500 index. The company reported earnings per share of $9.11, significantly exceeding Wall Street's expectations of $2.90 and driving overall S&P 500 year-over-year earnings growth from 37.9% without Alphabet down to 25.9%. Much of this gain came in the form of unrealized gains on its equity investments. Alphabet’s investment portfolio includes a significant stake in SpaceX (SPCX), which it valued at $94 billion following the company's June IPO, compared to an initial investment under $1 billion. However, Alphabet is currently restricted from selling most of this position until late 2027. Additionally, Alphabet holds a substantial stake in AI firm Anthropic, expected to go public as soon as fall 2026. Despite the impressive gains on its investments, these do not reflect direct performance improvements within Alphabet’s own operations but still benefit shareholders through unrealized appreciation.