About one-half of the S&P 500 has reported first-quarter earnings results, and so far the results have been incredibly solid—especially considering that the analyst community was distinctly lackluster as we began the season.

Nearly three-quarters of the S&P 500 companies that have reported first-quarter results so far have beat expectations, and we’re seeing double-digit earnings growth — a huge beat to early analyst expectations of just 2.2% growth!

And the other huge news this earnings season is that companies are actually starting to raise their guidance after two quarters where companies came out with lowered or conservative guidance.

This is a strong sign for the economy as a whole, and it’s no surprise that the Dow is up well over 300 points so far this week as earnings goose the market higher.

Right now, as the headlines are filled with worries about Europe, this is the type of “wall of worry” that the market loves to climb. U.S. markets are an oasis right now, but investors need to be aware that the market is narrowing—becoming more and more selective as investors focus only on the best-of-the-best stocks that are able to continue growing sales and earnings.

So continue to follow along with my updates here at the blog, and please also check out my Facebook page. I just put up a poll question about how high Apple (NASDAQ:

AAPL) will go in 2012. This is a stock that I’ve recommended it for a while in my Blue Chip Growth Buy List where we’ve racked up more than 200%+ gains so far in the stock, and I think that there’s still significant upside left—this can absolutely become a trillion-dollar company within the next three years.