Prominent U.S. companies have acknowledged the unpredictability of the trade-war economy by yanking or dialing back their financial forecasts.

Still, results from the past quarter show American corporations were on strong footing heading into April's tariff escalations.

With the reporting season nearly done, profits from companies in the S&P 500 are expected to have risen about 13% in the first quarter from a year earlier, according to FactSet. At the end of March, analysts expected roughly 7% earnings growth.

A solid earnings season has helped stocks claw back their losses from a tumultuous spring, leaving the S&P 500 down just 1.3% in 2025. The broad index has even gained 2.3% since President Trump's April 2 announcement of plans for tariffs jolted markets.

Reasons for caution abound. Those include the shifts in U.S. trade policy, jitters in the bond market and fears of a resurgence in inflation -- and all come while stocks look expensive relative to history. The risks were on full display last week, with a weak auction of government debt driving declines in stocks Wednesday and fresh tariff broadsides from Trump fueling losses Friday.

"It's pretty muddy right now," said Ryan Kelley, chief investment officer at Hennessy Funds. "We need time to go by to really see the effects of the tariffs and the effects of the uncertainty."

Investors entered the earnings season that kicked off in April hoping corporate executives would shed light on how Trump's tariff plans would affect business and profits. They parsed first-quarter results for clues about how the uncertainty surrounding trade and pessimism among consumers might have affected business.

This week, investors will seek fresh insights into the effects on companies as they study results from AutoZone, NVIDIA and Costco. They will also scrutinize data on consumer confidence and jobless claims.

For some investors, the better-than-expected earnings season provided welcome assurance that the U.S. economy and their bets on U.S. companies were holding up.

"People were thinking that the economy was slowing down, that employment would slow down and that would negatively impact earnings. But that did not happen," said Mary Ann Bartels, chief investment strategist at Sanctuary Wealth. "And in fact, earnings came in significantly stronger than what investors were anticipating."

Investors hoping to hear about tariffs on company earnings calls weren't disappointed. Through Thursday, tariffs were mentioned on the earnings calls of 2,136 U.S. publicly traded companies, the most in quarterly data going back to 2016, according to AlphaSense.

But those discussions didn't necessarily yield the clarity many sought. Some companies offered frank admissions that they don't know what the future holds. Delta Air Lines, Ford and clog-and-sandal company Crocs were among those setting aside their financial outlooks for the year altogether.

Wal-Mart drew attention when the retail giant said it would raise prices this month and early this summer, as tariff-affected merchandise reaches store shelves. Trump then criticized Walmart on social media, illustrating the risks for companies as they navigate the trade war.

Several of Walmart's fellow retailers struggled this past week, with Target's stock dropping after the company reported disappointing results and shares of T.J. Maxx owner TJX falling after the off-price retailer gave quarterly guidance that analysts found conservative.

Of course, the first quarter wrapped up before Trump revealed the extent of his tariff plans. For some investors, that means companies' results are of limited use in forecasting how they will perform going forward.

"The quarter itself was a throwaway," said Jim Polk, head of equity investments at Homestead Advisers. "It was really more around these unknowns that we're trying to figure out: what's going to happen over the next -- not only this year but in the next couple years."

Friday brought a reminder of just how unpredictable the path ahead is for companies and shareholders. Trump threatened to impose a 50% tariff on the European Union within days and warned Apple that iPhones manufactured abroad could face import taxes. The S&P dropped 0.7% for the day, while Apple shares retreated 3%.

Earlier in the week, stocks faltered when a disappointing auction for 20-year Treasury bonds stoked worries about rising deficits. Some investors have grown uneasy about the issuance of government debt that could follow Trump's multitrillion-dollar fiscal package.

And consumers are worried that inflation could heat up again. Respondents to a recent University of Michigan survey said they expect prices to surge 7.3% over the next year, the highest reading since 1981.

Still, the earnings season has offered some reassurance.

"At the end of the day, you can't knock the fact that we've had some really good earnings growth, and that's very good for the overall S&P," Kelley said. "Now, though, we have to see what happens from here."