Earnings Week Aug 4–8: AMD, Disney, Uber, Eli Lilly, Palantir — The Trade Setups You Need

By Yogurt · 2026-08-02 · Earnings Preview

S&P 500 earnings growth is running at 47.4% — more than double the 23.3% expected at the start of the quarter. With Amazon and Apple already in the books, the spotlight shifts to five more names this week that could move markets: AMD, Disney, Uber, Eli Lilly, and Palantir.

The Earnings Machine Keeps Running

The numbers from Q2 2026 earnings season are historic. According to FactSet, 86% of S&P 500 companies that have reported so far beat consensus estimates — and the blended earnings growth rate is running at 47.4% year-over-year, well above the 23.3% Wall Street expected at the start of the quarter. That's not a beat. That's a blowout at the index level.

Last week, the Magnificent 7 delivered Amazon's first-ever $200 billion quarter and Apple's strongest June quarter on record. The Mag 7 as a group rose 4.2% on the week. Now comes the next act: five names that could reshape sector narratives for the rest of the summer.

Monday, Aug 4: AMD — The $25 Billion Question

Advanced Micro Devices ($AMD) has one of the most complex earnings setups of the season. On one hand, the company's MI300X GPU has become a genuine alternative to Nvidia for AI inference workloads, and Microsoft's deepened Azure partnership with AMD represents institutional validation. On the other hand, AMD has spent years promising to close the gap with Nvidia — and every quarter, the market asks: is this the quarter the promise becomes a number?

The key metric to watch: Data Center revenue. AMD guided for roughly $6.7 billion in Q2 data center sales. If it comes in above that — particularly with a meaningful contribution from MI300X volume — the narrative shifts from "challenger" to "contender." If it misses, investors will interpret it as confirmation that Nvidia's ecosystem lock-in is permanent.

Other earnings Monday: Caterpillar (CAT) for macro demand signaling, Pfizer (PFE) and Merck (MRK) for pharma trends, and McDonald's (MCD) for consumer health.

Tuesday, Aug 5: Three Marquee Names in One Day

Eli Lilly ($LLY) — The GLP-1 Gauge

Eli Lilly has become a proxy for the entire GLP-1 weight-loss drug revolution. Tirzepatide (sold as Mounjaro and Zepbound) is generating billions in sales, and the question isn't whether demand is strong — it is — but whether supply has finally caught up. Manufacturing capacity constraints have been the limiting factor for Lilly's revenue ceiling. If Tuesday's report shows supply normalization alongside demand acceleration, the stock has significant upside from current levels. Consensus estimate: ~$4.50 EPS, ~$12.8B revenue.

Walt Disney ($DIS) — Streaming Profitability or Bust

Disney's transformation story is at an inflection point. CEO Bob Iger has spent two years restructuring the company around a dual mandate: make streaming profitable while keeping theme parks growing. If both legs of that stool are holding Tuesday night, the stock — which has underperformed the market significantly over the past two years — could re-rate sharply. Watch the Disney+ subscriber count and the direct-to-consumer operating income line most closely.

Uber ($UBER) — The Delivery Hero Wild Card

Uber's quarter is complicated by its $14.8 billion acquisition of Delivery Hero, announced just weeks ago. That's a major M&A commitment that instantly raises questions about integration costs, debt load, and whether the company can digest such a large European food delivery business while continuing to grow its core ride-hailing platform. Organic growth metrics — gross bookings ex-Delivery Hero — will be the key to separating underlying business performance from acquisition noise. If Uber can show strong organic momentum, the acquisition looks like an offensive move. If organic growth wobbles, it looks like a distraction.

Also reporting Tuesday: Shopify (SHOP) and AppLovin (APP) — AppLovin in particular has been one of the highest-momentum names in the market and its report could move the entire adtech sector.

Later in the Week: Palantir and Berkshire

Palantir ($PLTR) has built a cult-like following in the retail investor community, and its government AI contracts keep growing. The key question: can commercial revenue — US enterprise — scale fast enough to become the majority of the business? That's the long-term thesis. Every quarter that commercial revenue accelerates is a quarter that thesis gets validated.

Berkshire Hathaway ($BRK/B) rounds out the week. More than an earnings report, it's a sentiment indicator: how Warren Buffett's team has allocated the company's massive cash reserves — and whether they deployed any of it during Q2's chip sector selloff — will tell us something about where the most sophisticated long-term capital sees value.

The Macro Backdrop: Complicated but Not Broken

Q2 GDP growth came in at 1.5%, below the 2.0% consensus — but the underlying components showed resilience. Consumer spending actually accelerated from Q1. The miss came from inventory drawdowns and trade components rather than demand weakness. That's a more forgiving read of the slowdown than the headline number implies.

The bigger tension this week isn't domestic — it's the Fed's response to still-elevated rates and a job market that the ADP employment data (due Tuesday) and ISM Services PMI will clarify further. If those numbers show softness, rate cut expectations will strengthen. If they show resilience, rates stay higher for longer — and the equity market will have to weigh strong earnings against a persistent discount rate headwind.

The Playbook

Here's how to think about this week's names:

  • AMD: Beat on Data Center = narrative change. Miss = Nvidia stay-at-home trade gets stronger.
  • LLY: Supply normalization + strong guidance = major breakout candidate.
  • DIS: Streaming profitability + park strength = long-overdue re-rating opportunity.
  • UBER: Watch organic growth gross bookings — ignore Delivery Hero noise in the headline.
  • PLTR: Commercial revenue acceleration = validation of the enterprise AI thesis.

The setup is this: with 86% of S&P 500 companies already beating and the blended growth rate nearly double expectations, the market has high standards. That's the risk — not that these companies are fundamentally broken, but that a good number is already priced in. One earnings beat plus strong guidance moves stocks. A beat without a raise often doesn't. That's the distinction to watch for in every report this week.

May the Schwartz be with your portfolio. 🧘‍♂️