The S&P 500 has a cyclically adjusted price-to-earnings (CAPE) ratio of 34.44x, indicating elevated valuation levels. Despite this, the earnings season for the index has shown strong performance, with 72% of companies having reported their first-quarter results. Both the percentage of companies exceeding earnings expectations and the magnitude of those earnings surprises are above their 10-year averages. Year-over-year earnings growth for the S&P 500 in the first quarter stands at 12.8%, surpassing the March 31 estimate of 7.2%. The forward 12-month price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio is currently 20.2, which is higher than both the five-year average of 19.9 and the 10-year average of 18.3, reflecting continued investor optimism amid the earnings growth.