In the last two days, two headline investors have opined on the stock market, and their bias is positive. Larry Fink, who runs BlackRock, one of the largest investment companies in the world, is on Bloomberg news indicating that investors should be 100% invested in stocks. Particularly interesting is that Mr. Fink is a bond guy. Read the article here.
On the heels of that pronouncement, Warren Buffet, in a mild twist, says “bonds should come with a warning label.” In this article, Buffett – who is frequently bullish on stocks – indicates that both gold and bonds will not likely produce much return going forward.
Nouriel Roubini, Mr. Super Bear, is also mildly bullish, saying the current rally might have some staying power, but his bullishness extends only through the first half of 2012. Then all bets are off.
While stocks are, overall, pretty cheap, they’ve also run up some 15% in four months. That rally, coupled with the continuing disarray in Europe, warrants a note of caution. We’ve sold more than we’ve bought lately, and are finding it tough to pass stocks through our relatively strict valuation screens onto our “buy” list.