The S&P 500’s estimated bottom-up operating EPS nosed slightly higher during the first month of Q4 reporting (Chart 1). That’s a win in the usual slow-erosion, forward EPS game. The index is on track to expand operating earnings at 14% YOY for the last quarter of 2024, which would be the highest since Q2-23 (+17%) and well above the 4% average we’ve seen over the past three years. Full-year 2024 operating EPS is starting to crystalize around $233—a 9% improvement from 2023’s results. At present, EPS growth projections for 2025 are just shy of 16%.