“Cheap” and “tech” aren’t words typically mentioned in the same sentence on Wall Street. Barclays strategist Venu Krishna pointed out that Big Tech currently trades around 26 times forward earnings. While that’s technically a premium to the S & P 500, which trades at a multiple of 21, it’s also only in the 14th percentile in terms of relative valuation over the past decade. This comes as traders brace for a big week of earnings. Meta Platforms , Alphabet , Amazon and Apple are all set to post their latest results next week. So far, the reporting period has been strong. Of the more than 80 companies in the S & P 500 that have so far posted their latest quarterly financials, nearly 85% have topped earnings expectations, according to FactSet data. XLK YTD mountain Tech year to date The combination of historically low valuations in major technology names and a strong earnings backdrop could add fuel to a stock market that refuses to buckle, even as geopolitical uncertainty swirls around the globe. “Taken together with superior margins and greater resilience to energy-driven demand shocks, this valuation backdrop reinforces our view that the U.S. remains better positioned than its global peers,” wrote Krishna at Barclays. “The U.S. consumer has stayed largely resilient, and U.S. equity funds have seen over $100 [billion] of inflows year to date.” Krishna sees the S & P 500 ending the year at 7,650 — implying upside of 8.3% from Tuesday’s close. Stocks were headed for a strong session early Wednesday, boosted by a U.S.-Iran ceasefire extension and solid quarterly figures from companies such as Boeing .
Tech is cheap ahead of a big week of earnings. What it means for the stock market
Apr 22, 2026
