Click to view a price quote on INTC. : The S&P 500 is up 12.31% year-to-date in a year that is projected to see companies on the index post a blended earnings growth rate of 4.5%, with the first quarter expected to see an earnings contraction of 2.7%, according to FactSet data. The average forward price-to-earnings on the S&P 500 is 16.2, above the long-term historical average of 15.4.