“2024 Stock Market Highlights: A Year of Resilience and Record Breaks”

Stocks are closing out 2024 near record highs.

Over the past 12 months, the Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) has surged by more than 31%, and the S&P 500 (^GSPC) has climbed over 25%. In comparison, the Dow Jones (^DJI) has posted a more modest gain of 14%.

Despite recent market declines, investors remain optimistic about the future, fueled by significant headlines from the past year. The Federal Reserve made its first interest rate cut in nearly four years in 2024, while political changes in the White House provided a boost to stocks.

Earnings growth accelerated, and the market rally began to broaden. Despite a brief growth scare that rattled investors during the summer, the U.S. economy is ending 2024 on solid footing.

Here are 10 key charts that illustrate the market and economic resilience this year, with eyes now set on 2025.

The Bull Market Roars On
It was a record-setting year on Wall Street, with the S&P 500 setting 57 all-time highs, placing it among the top five years for the most records in the index’s history.

Two years into the bull market, strategists attribute the rally to strong corporate earnings and momentum from several tech giants, collectively known as the “Magnificent Seven.” This group includes chipmaker Nvidia (NVDA), along with Tesla (TSLA), Alphabet (GOOGL, GOOG), Amazon (AMZN), Apple (AAPL), Microsoft (MSFT), and Meta (META).

Earnings growth accelerated across sectors in 2024, finally expanding beyond the “Magnificent Seven” as the remaining 493 S&P 500 companies emerged from their earnings recession.

With S&P 500 earnings expected to grow by 15% year-over-year in 2025, continued earnings growth is a key driver that many bullish strategists are watching.

“The weight of evidence suggests the primary market trend remains higher, driven by earnings growth in 2025,” said Truist co-chief investment officer Keith Lerner in his market outlook.

While the market rally began to broaden in 2024, the Magnificent Seven still posted impressive gains.

Nvidia rose more than 175%, and Alphabet, Amazon, Tesla, and Meta all saw gains of 30% or more, outperforming both the Nasdaq Composite and the S&P 500.

As of December 23, the 10 largest stocks in the S&P 500 accounted for 39.9% of the index’s market capitalization, the largest share in at least the last 30 years, according to Charles Schwab senior investment strategist Kevin Gordon. This concentration underscores the dominant role of a few key names in the market’s performance.