Five Mag 7 Stocks Report Q1 Earnings This Week
Microsoft, Apple, Alphabet, Amazon, Meta release results Wednesday and Thursday. Combined $649B capex plan faces investor scrutiny.
The biggest week of Q1 earnings season starts now.
Five of the Magnificent Seven report results over the next three days. Microsoft, Alphabet, Amazon, and Meta release numbers Wednesday after the close. Apple follows Thursday. Together these five companies represent about a quarter of the S&P 500's market cap—roughly $16 trillion.
The setup is unusual. Markets are at record highs. The S&P 500 is up 9% in April alone. And yet the questions facing Big Tech have rarely been more pointed: is the AI spending paying off?
The Capex Question
Combined capital expenditures from Microsoft, Alphabet, Amazon, and Meta are projected to hit $649 billion in 2026, up from $411 billion last year. That's a 58% increase in infrastructure spending during a period when some analysts are questioning AI monetization timelines.
| Company | Expected EPS | Expected Revenue | YoY Growth |
|---|---|---|---|
| Microsoft | $4.04 | $81.4B | +17% / +16% |
| Meta | $7.51 | $55.5B | ~31% |
| Amazon | $2.11 | $177.2B | ~14% |
| Alphabet | TBD | TBD | AI search focus |
| Apple | TBD | TBD | Services growth |
The Mag 7 earnings are projected to expand 19% year-over-year in Q1, compared with 12% for the rest of the S&P 500. That outperformance has justified premium valuations—but it also raises the bar.
What's Changed Since January
The last time we previewed Mag 7 earnings was Q4 2025. Since then, a few things have shifted.
Meta announced 8,000 layoffs in February despite committing to higher AI spending. Microsoft began offering buyout packages. The message from both: we're reallocating, not cutting. Human capital is being traded for compute capacity.
Apple's leadership changed. Tim Cook stepped down last week, with John Ternus taking over as CEO. It's his first earnings call as chief executive. Investors will watch his commentary as much as the numbers.
And the Fed meets Tuesday and Wednesday—same days as earnings. Jerome Powell's second-to-last press conference as Chair could set the tone for markets before Big Tech even reports.
Stock-by-Stock
Microsoft (Wed): Azure growth is the number to watch. The cloud unit has decelerated from 30%+ to the mid-20s. Management attributed recent weakness to capacity constraints, not demand—bulls need that narrative to hold. Copilot revenue disclosures would help.
Meta (Wed): The AI pivot is working. Revenue is expected up 31%, driven by Advantage+ ad targeting and Reels monetization. But regulatory risk looms. The company faces ongoing child safety litigation that could affect U.S. operations.
Amazon (Wed): AWS growth and retail margins are the focus. The $177 billion revenue estimate implies 14% growth—solid but not exceptional. Operating margin improvement in retail would signal the cost cuts are working.
Alphabet (Wed): Search remains dominant, but the company is spending heavily to integrate Gemini across products. Investors want to see advertising revenue holding despite AI Overviews potentially reducing click-through rates.
Apple (Thu): Services growth and iPhone demand in China are key. The Services segment has been the margin engine. Any signs of deceleration would pressure the multiple. Ternus's capital allocation commentary will matter.
The Broader Context
These five reports will likely determine whether the April rally extends into May or runs out of steam.
The setup mirrors January 2025, when hyperscaler capex projections initially spooked markets before earnings beats turned sentiment around. The difference now is that stocks are higher and expectations are too.
If results impress, the S&P 500 could push toward 7,300. If they disappoint—particularly on forward guidance or AI returns—the SOX rally could finally break.
Traders should prepare for volatility. Options markets are pricing roughly 5% earnings-day moves for each of the five names. That's larger than normal, suggesting the market isn't sure which way this goes.