After a brutal week for tech stocks, the next five days could decide whether the sell-off continues or starts to calm down. Apple and Palantir report earnings on Monday, Americans vote in midterm elections on Tuesday, and the October jobs report arrives on Friday. In between, more than 100 big companies report results.
Here is what to watch, day by day, in plain terms.
What Happened Last Week
On Friday, October 30, 2026, the Nasdaq fell 2.86% to 25,437.00, its worst day since June. The S&P 500 fell 1.82% to 7,580.07 and the Dow dropped 1.09% to 51,770.31. For the full week, the S&P 500 lost 0.58%, the Nasdaq fell 2% and the Dow gave up 0.85%.
The main trigger was earnings: Amazon and Intel disappointed investors, Alphabet had already fallen sharply, and worries about how much tech companies are spending on AI spread across the whole sector. The semiconductor ETF SOXX dropped 9.1% on Friday alone.
CNBC host Jim Cramer summed up the mood on Friday: “After a brutal week for tech, don’t assume the worst is behind us.” He pointed to the election, uncertainty overseas, the jobs report and another wave of earnings as reasons to stay careful.
Monday, November 2: Apple and Palantir
Apple reports after the market closes on Monday, the biggest name of the week. Analysts expect earnings of about $1.98 per share on revenue of about $113.3 billion, up roughly 11% from a year ago. iPhone revenue alone is expected to be around $56.5 billion, about half of total sales. Apple shares recently hit an all-time high, helped by enthusiasm for its latest products, and the stock trades at almost 40 times earnings, so there is very little room for disappointment.
Palantir also reports Monday after the close. Analysts expect earnings of about $0.41 per share on revenue of about $2.18 billion, up more than 80% from a year ago. Cramer said he expects encouraging results, citing strong customer feedback about Palantir’s AI software. Other companies reporting Monday include Marriott, Vertex and ON Semiconductor.
Tuesday, November 3: Elections and AMD
Americans vote in midterm elections, with 35 Senate seats on the ballot, and AMD reports earnings after the close. AMD is expected to report revenue of about $13.1 billion and earnings of about $1.94 per share, up sharply from a year ago. As a chipmaker selling into the AI boom, its results will be read as a signal for the whole semiconductor sector, especially after Intel’s weak forecast rattled chip stocks last week. Other Tuesday names include Arista, Block, Booking Holdings, Shopify and Pfizer, plus a job openings report.
Wednesday to Friday: A Packed Finish
Wednesday, November 4 is the busiest earnings day, with Qualcomm, Uber, McDonald’s, Datadog, Arm, AppLovin and DoorDash among the names reporting, plus private payrolls and services data. Thursday, November 5 brings Atlassian, Cloudflare, Airbnb, ConocoPhillips and Cigna, plus weekly jobless claims and a speech from Cleveland Fed President Beth Hammack.
Friday, November 6 is the finale: the October jobs report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics at 8:30 a.m. Eastern, shaping expectations for the Federal Reserve’s December decision on interest rates. Moderna and Humana also report Friday. Context from CNBC’s weekly outlook: S&P 500 companies are beating earnings expectations by only 1.4% on average this season, well below the five-year average beat of 7.5%.
Why It Matters
There are three kinds of risk in five days — earnings risk (Apple, Palantir and AMD have to prove AI spending is paying off), political risk (midterm results could change what policies are possible in Washington), and economic risk (the jobs report could move interest-rate expectations, affecting everything from mortgages to stock valuations). The practical point is simple: expect big moves in either direction and do not read too much into any single day.
What Happens Next
If Apple and Palantir both beat expectations and the jobs report comes in steady, the tech sell-off could start to ease. If Apple disappoints, or jobs data surprises in either direction, volatility is likely to continue. By Friday evening, much more will be known about whether the biggest tech companies can still grow into their high valuations, whether voters changed the political picture, and whether the US job market is still holding up.
Final Thoughts
Weeks like this are why investing feels stressful. Focus on actual numbers — revenue, earnings and jobs — rather than noise. By Friday, those numbers will tell a clearer story than any single prediction today.
Key figures:
- Apple (Monday): expected EPS about $1.98, revenue about $113.3 billion
- Palantir (Monday): expected EPS about $0.41, revenue about $2.18 billion
- AMD (Tuesday): expected EPS about $1.94, revenue about $13.1 billion
- Friday, October 30: Nasdaq -2.86%, S&P 500 -1.82%, Dow -1.09%
- Friday jobs report: October employment data, 8:30 a.m. Eastern, November 6
Disclaimer: This article is for educational and informational purposes only and does not constitute financial advice.
Sources: CNBC week-ahead outlook as reported by TradingView News (November 1, 2026) and FXEmpire; company earnings expectations via Fiscal.ai data as reported by TradingView.
