Approximately three-fourths of the S&P 500 reported calendar third-quarter earnings that surpassed Wall Street's expectations.

Altogether, the companies reported a 6.1% EPS surprise for the third quarter, and over one-third of the reporting companies posted at least 10% growth in EPS year over year.

Among the 11 S&P 500 sectors, eight reported year-over-year EPS gains for the third quarter, all in single digits, while three sectors reported declines. The healthcare sector posted the largest aggregate EPS gain at 8.8% year over year, while EPS declined by 38.6% in the energy sector.

On Dec.5, The Kroger Co. reported 47 cents in earnings per share, below the consensus estimate of 49 cents as earnings fell 2.1% year over year. Revenue increased by 1.1% year over year to $27.97 billion but was still below the consensus estimate of $28.18 billion.

Meanwhile, Dollar General Corp. reported EPS of $1.42, beating the consensus estimate of $1.38. Earnings jumped 8.4% year over year and total revenue grew by 8.9%.