NEW YORK, Jan 1 — Investors have piled into traditionally defensive stocks in the last weeks of the year, spurring a rally some believe may lose steam early in 2022.
Investors have had plenty of reasons to turn defensive in recent weeks, as uncertainty over the new Omicron variant, soaring inflation and a hawkish shift at the Federal Reserve bolstered the case for caution. Zachary Hill, head of portfolio management at Horizon Investments, believes some of the strength in defensive stocks may reflect fund managers taking profits on winning positions and reallocating funds toward beaten-down names, a common year-end practice for many investors.
On a historical basis, utilities have been the top performing S&P sector in December, logging an average gain of 1.9 per cent for the month since 1990, only to fall 0.25 per cent on average in January, according to a CFRA Research analysis. “People are much more willing to embrace risk in the new months than they are in the final months of the year,” said Sam Stovall, chief investment strategist at CFRA.
Others, however, say a more aggressive Fed could also weigh on the broader S&P 500, where valuations stand at their highest level in around two decades.
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