Complacency among equity bulls is growing but not extreme yet. With the S&P 500 ending last week right at the July high and breakout odds rising post-FOMC Wednesday, options-related sentiment readings can soon begin to flash red. From July 27th … Continued
VIX acts like it wants to go lower for now. Concurrently, VIX:VXV is in overbought territory. And both the CBOE put-to-call ratio and the ISEE index point to growing investor pessimism. For the first time in four weeks, VIX went … Continued
Some early signs of fatigue are showing up on the Russell 2000, which has more than doubled since March. Conditions are extended. A week ago yesterday, the small cap index was 34.7 percent above its 200-day. Although this in and … Continued
After persistently remaining elevated for several weeks, investor sentiment is coming under pressure a little. Assuming institutions began distributing, retail would not be able to mop up all the supply. Record margin debt then becomes front and center. Equity bulls … Continued
With investor sentiment elevated and help from the Fed, margin debt and foreigners, major US equity indexes remain near highs. Bulls are positioning for a Santa rally, followed by the onset of 4Q earnings season in the first half next … Continued
There is an air of invincibility among equity bulls. A contrarian-minded investor may find this uncomfortably lop-sided, but nothing says it cannot continue in a seasonally favorable period. The recent jump in investor sentiment is yet to translate into consumer … Continued
Stocks are ripping higher. Sentiment is exuberant. Several technical indicators are extended. The Fed’s aggressive action was a catalyst in March when major US equity indices bottomed. Its asset holdings continue to grow, but the pace of growth has decelerated. … Continued
Elevated multiples have not bothered equity bulls. In recent months, the Fed too has come to their aid. Investor optimism is dangerously elevated going into the 4Q19 earnings season. The 4Q19 earnings season kicks off this week. Banks and brokers … Continued
Last year was a bumper year for stocks. Conditions are extended, sentiment effusive. History has taught us over and over again unwinding can be painful. As soon as 2020 began, US stocks picked up where they left off 2019. In … Continued
August for the most part saw bulls buy support and bears sell resistance. This worked out pretty well for both camps. In essence, after a late-July/early-August brief selloff, both put their foot down. Last week, major US equity indices rallied … Continued