The 2Q reporting season is in full swing. Many companies have knocked it out of the park, delivering earnings and revenue numbers that were well over expectations. Meanwhile, we have been looking at the early trends and, as usual, there are companies increasing guidance. Raising guidance is one of our Investing Themes for the second half of 2026. We view management's ability to raise guidance consistently as a catalyst for possible market-beating returns in the quarters ahead. It's even harder for companies to lift guidance during uncertain economic times, as vision is murky. This is especially true now, as the war in the Middle East drags on. Wall Street is also pondering a new Federal Reserve chairman, one with a different view about forward-looking guidance (or in this case, a lack thereof). A good number of companies already have increased guidance in this earnings cycle, so we are putting out a first round of companies that are in Argus' Fundamental Universe of Coverage and that made the grade.

The Vickers Top Buyers & Sellers is a daily report that identifies the five companies the largest insider purchase transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions as well as the five companies the largest insider sales transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions.

U.S. Bancorp is one of the largest diversified financial services firms in the United States. Services include consumer and commercial lending and depository services, cash management, trust, and investment management services. The company also engages in credit and debit card services, merchant processing, mortgage banking, insurance, brokerage, and leasing.

The major stock indices are lower at midday on Friday, with ongoing weakness in semiconductor stocks the headline culprit. On-again off-again worries about the massive investment in AI and the hoped-for payoff from that investment are on again, with a distinct risk-off mood taking hold. Meanwhile, earnings season is full swing and big-name reporters are indeed having a big-time impact on sentiment. Of note today is the report from Netflix, which failed to impress. That has the NFLX shares down about 8% so far in the session but also brings with it larger implications to consider. With so many stocks at all-time highs, there is little room for error -- be it in actual results or (often more important) guidance. Lurking in the relative background is the war in Iran, which is intensifying after a resolution seemed at hand only a few weeks ago. On that score, crude oil is up over 3% on the day and at $80.85 per barrel. In a report this morning, Argus' CMT Mark Arbeter noted that WTI has a shot at $86, which is the start of chart resistance, the falling 50-day average, and a 38.2% retracement of the decline since April 7. With all of the above in play, the VIX Volatility index has popped 10% and is currently at 18.26. The yield on the 10-year note is at 4.53%.