The S&P 500 just hit an all-time high. Gold just hit (another) all-time high. Stock market selloffs driven by DeepSeek news, fresh Trump Administration tariffs, and other “tape bombs” aren’t lasting long.
Yet individual investors are the most bearish since November 2023! Or in short, skepticism reigns.
Check out this MoneyShow Chart of the Day. It shows data from the American Association of Individual Investors survey. The group has been surveying its members each week for decades to see if they’re bearish or bullish on stocks. And the bear tally just hit its highest in 15 months.
AAII Bearish % Gauge Hits Highest Level in 15 Months
Data by YCharts
Specifically, 47.2% of respondents in the Feb. 13 survey said they were bearish. That was the highest since 50.2% on Nov. 2, 2023. That’s pretty amazing considering the short-term, “buy the dip” trading action we’ve seen. Not to mention the fact we just enjoyed two straight years of 20%-plus gains in the S&P 500.
If you attended the 2025 MoneyShow Las Vegas this week, you heard me explain why this is a GOOD thing for markets. But if not, here’s the short version...
When everyone is wildly bullish, even the slightest bit of bad news can fuel aggressive selling. When they’re not, and stocks keep rising anyway, the FOMO effect kicks in on pullbacks. Investors can’t help but buy because they’re afraid they’ll miss the next leg up.
Bottom line: Stay bold!
