01:39 PM EDT, 07/29/2024 (MT Newswires) -- S&P 500 companies' quarterly financial results have been more positive than negative so far in the current reporting cycle, with four sectors seeing earnings grow by double-digit percentages on an annual basis, Oppenheimer Asset Management said Monday.

Some 206 or 41% of the companies in the benchmark equity index have reported their latest results so far, with earnings up 6.5% year over year on revenue growth of 4.1%, the firm said. Earnings are up at seven of the 11 S&P 500 sectors, led by technology's 19% jump and utilities' 18% gain. Financials and communication services have also posted double-digit earnings growth, while energy and real estate plunged by 17% and 15%, respectively, Oppenheimer said.

Sales are up from a year earlier for all 11 sectors, led by financials' 8.3% gain, followed by consumer discretionary, up 6.3%, according to the report.

Oppenheimer said 171 firms in the S&P 500 are scheduled to report results this week. These include mega-cap companies Apple ( AAPL ) , Microsoft ( MSFT ) , Facebook parent Meta Platforms ( META ) , and Amazon.com ( AMZN ) . Other big names include Intel ( INTC ) , Boeing ( BA ) , Pfizer ( PFE ) , AMD (AMD) and Exxon Mobil ( XOM ) . Some 78 firms will report next week, Oppenheimer said.

On Thursday, official data showed the US economy grew at a stronger-than-projected pace in the second quarter as consumer spending accelerated while inflation cooled. On Friday, government data showed the pace of US consumer spending growth eased in June, while the Federal Reserve's preferred inflation metric held steady on an annual basis.

"Last week's economic data suggested to us that the Fed has more reason to gain confidence in cutting interest rates without risk of an inflation blowback," Oppenheimer Asset Management Chief Investment Strategist John Stoltzfus said in a Monday note to clients. The data suggested the central bank's monetary policy committee could start lowering its benchmark lending rate as soon as in September, according to the note.

"In our view, if the Fed still isn't ready to cut (interest rates) as soon as September, then it's more likely in November and again in December at a pace of 25 basis points each," Stoltzfus said. "Overall, resilient growth and slowing inflation raise the odds of a 'soft landing' ahead."

Markets are widely expecting the Federal Open Market Committee to keep interest rates unchanged Wednesday and deliver a 25-basis-point cut in September, according to the CME FedWatch tool. The FOMC tightened monetary policy by 525 basis points from March 2022 through July 2023 to tame inflation, but has since kept interest rates unchanged, with its latest pause coming last month.

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