Predicting the S&P 500 in 2026: six "classic” signals, six different stories

Using six classic one-year-ahead predictors, I generate simple, transparent forecasts for the S&P 500’s 2026 return—and the main message is disagreement: most signals cluster around a “normal” single-digit year (~6–10%), while the gold-to-platinum ratio stands out with a much more bullish ~20%+ forecast. The punchline isn’t that any one model is a crystal ball, but that the divergence itself is informative .