Many investors are holding off for a market turnaround before they get back in to exchange traded funds (ETFs) and assorted other securities.

But some Wall Street players are already looking around to be the first ones to snap up hard-hit investments on the cheap, report Andrew Ross Sorkin and Eric Dash for the New York Times. “Vulture” investors are combing through balance sheets of potential targets that could run into trouble if banks start calling back loans to business and the economy gets much worse.

In the banking industry, these investors are looking to community and regional banks that can be nursed back to health when the economy turns around.

It’s not just financials, either: they’re looking in the industrial and retail sectors, among others, too. The thinking is that these sectors are going to be pushed to the brink as the economy flags, but could be primed for big results as things improve.

Will the gamble pay off? Only time will tell. We have our own plan for entry back into the markets that involves looking at 200-day moving averages to identify trends. This takes guesswork and emotions out of the equation and allows you to focus solely on what’s important when making buying decisions.

Tags: Financial, Retail, Sector ETFs