Theodore L. Parrish
Principal and Director of Investments, Co-Portfolio Manager, Henssler Equity Fund
The Henssler Financial Group
A: Yes
We’re seeing some favorable signs of stability. I’m just hoping it’s here to stay. We have a lot of stimulus pumped into the market, so sooner or later it will gain traction. The key thing with the current momentum will be earnings reports that come out in the next couple of weeks. We had policy decisions that started out anti-market but are now more pro-market coming from politicians and the Obama Administration. We’ve seen a few companies that came out with numbers that surprised us, especially in the financial sector. Things that have hurt the bottom line for a lot of financial stocks in the past couple of years–such as the write-offs they incurred–are starting to reverse a little. That was the sector that pulled us into this mess, so they can lead us out.
If we get companies reporting better earnings along with improved economic data, the market will continue to go up. Things are bad but not as bad as we thought. There is some light at the end of the tunnel. The market is signaling that it may recover soon if we do not have any major catastrophes in the financial sector. I don’t think that will happen. We will have a sustainable recovery in the stock market–and the economy.
Where Parrish sees opportunities for investors: consumer cyclicals, industrials, and infrastructure (roads, bridges and energy) plays