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US single-stock shopping for by retail traders is hitting new information, and the Magnificent Seven is accounting for greater than 70 per cent of web purchases, in response to JPMorgan information.
Whereas ETF inflows have been “minimal” on Tuesday, single-stock buys exceeded sells by $3.2bn, the dealer discovered. That’s about $1bn greater than the second-biggest each day influx on document, in March 2020.
Per the dealer’s newest Retail Radar from Emma Wu and crew:
Retail merchants are on observe to interrupt all information. Their each day influx exceeded $2B twice final week – a stage reached solely 9 occasions (as of final Friday) up to now 3 years with 5 occasions occurring this 12 months after the Inauguration. The momentum continued this Monday regardless of excessive uncertainty of tariffs, as their shopping for move reached $2B by 1:30pm, ending the day with +$3B. They began sturdy on Tuesday, breaking the $2B and $3B thresholds inside the first 1.5hrs and by 1pm, respectively, which have been ~+7.8 sigma above the 1M common for that point of the day, and ending the day with +$4B web imbalance:

JPMorgan’s retail sentiment rating — an AI-powered content material crawler — is as euphoric because it has ever been, on Tuesday transferring a full level increased than memestonk mania in 2021:

And retail traders are accounting for 20 and 30 per cent of complete market quantity this 12 months, which versus historical past is pretty excessive:

Additionally on Tuesday, You’ll be shocked to iearn: Institutional traders net-sold about $4bn of equities sand purchased $8bn of choices delta:

What does all this imply for the market? Wu writes:
We discover market usually outperforms following excessive retail shopping for and underperforms after excessive retail promoting in short-term. This indicator turned significantly evident since 2020, and much more pronounced since mid-2023.
By “short-term”, she means two weeks, so the nice vibes can’t be trusted to carry for Nvidia’s outcomes on Feb 26.
It’s value noting additionally that earnings season for the Mag7 has been blended thus far . . .
… which continues a long term development of ever-decreasing surprises . . .

… and for the year-to-date, the common retail punter have been underperforming the S&P 500. Simply as they did in 2024, 2022, 2021, 2019, 2018, 2016 and 2015:

Nonetheless, somebody should be having enjoyable. That’s the principle factor.