Bullish sentiment among advisors continued to climb in the latest week to 47.4% from 44.2% the previous week and 34.4% at the start of October before the stock market blasted off, Investors Intelligence said Wednesday.
“The new bulls noted higher support levels building after only modest declines as their main reason for changing, although they weren’t that optimistic. The failure to break out of the trading range kept many bears negative,” the newsletter service said.
The iShares S&P 500 (NYSEArca: IVV) is up 1.7% year to date and has gained 3% over the past month.
The number of bulls rose for the fifth straight week. “The bulls jumped with the rally and are now nearly 15% above the bears. The current reading for the bulls is approaching the danger area above 50%. Market moves often end with the bulls near 55%,” Investors Intelligence said.
There were fewer bears in the latest week at 32.6% from 34.7% a week ago and 46.3% to start October.
“That was the most bears since March 2009 when they peaked at 47.2%. That high reading signaled that the advisors were raising cash and contrarians recognized it as a buying opportunity,” the firm noted.
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