Monday, November 10, 2008

This Doesn't Make Sense

"The average Wall Street [Strategist] forecast calls for the S&P 500 to break out of a bear market and surge 20 percent to 1,118 by Dec. 31 -- more than twice as much as the biggest-ever advance to close out a year, according to data compiled by Bloomberg."

Hmmm. A lot of these estimates are probably stale. Big picture guys - strategists, economists - are reluctant to change their published forecasts too often, so are apt to sit on their hands in times of pronounced short-term volatility. If I were a strategist in print calling, at least implicitly, for a 20% rally in the next 7 weeks, I would be looking for a quiet spot to make another estimate cut. This could create a steady headwind into the close of the year.

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