Helping to support the fervor has been strong profit reports from Entergy and other big U.S. businesses. Companies in the S&P 500 are on track to deliver nearly 17% growth in their earnings per share for the final three months of 2024, compared with a year earlier. That would be the best growth since 2021, according to FactSet.

However, the S&P 500 ( ^GSPC -0.01%) is generally considered the best barometer for the overall U.S. stock market due to its scope and diversity. Read on to see the S&P 500's average return over the last decade, and to learn what Wall Street expects in the future.

Wall Street edged back from an all-time high following mixed profit reports from big companies. The S&P 500 barely budged on Friday and slipped by a hair, a day after rallying within 0.1% of its record set last month.

Wall Street edged back from its all-time high on Friday, as U.S. stock indexes drifted following mixed profit reports from big companies. The S&P 500 barely budged and slipped by less than 0.1%, a day after rallying within 0.

U.S. stocks rallied to the brink of a record after more companies reported fatter profits than expected. The S&P 500 rose 1% Thursday.