The last three months have taken a toll on investors’ psyches as the spike in Treasury yields, the war in the Middle East, and a prolonged period of 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:higher interest rates have made them as cautious as they’ve been all year. According to Investopedia’s recent survey of its daily newsletter readers, half of respondents say they are making safer investments due to market uncertainty. Thirty-seven percent are expecting 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:S&P 500 losses over the next six months, while one in four are expecting a significant drop ﷺ(10% or more) within the next𝔍 three months.

Investors’ Top Concerns

Investors have had plenty to worry about this year amid rising interest rates, 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:persistent inflation, geopolitical uncertainty and concerns about a recession. The most recent conflict in the Middle East, which began on October 7th, has added yet another element of uncertainty, and it tops the list of our readers' concerns, according to the survey. The 2024 elections, which topped the list in our last survey in August, has fallen on their list of concerns, while worries about persistently high interest rates have increased. The notion that interest rates will be higher for longer, has settled in and become the undercurrent of investors' expectations for꧙ future returns for the equity market.

Stocks for the Long Haul, but Cash is Still🍸 King

While most respondents still believe that the stock market will deliver the best returns over the next decade, they continue to favor cash, and cash equivalents now, as they have for most of the year. CDs and 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:money market funds top their list of where they are putting their money now, followed by government bonds, ETFs and individual stocks. With banking products offering yields of 5% or more, and government bonds selling at a deep discount, investors ha🔜ve had many alternatives to stoꦺcks all year, and have chosen those relative safe havens month after month. 

But if They Had an Extra $10K…

For the past two years, we have asked our readers through this survey what they wou💫ld do with an extra $10,000. Since May of this year, more respondents have chosen CDs over stocks and other asset classes. However, the recent rally in the stock market and indications from the Federal Reserve that interest rates may not go higher from here have whet investors’ appetites for risk. Individual stocks now top the list for where they would put that extra $10,000.

A Few of Our Favorite Stocks

Our readers’ preferences are pretty consistent when looking at their top equity holdings. Size matters, and investors like to run with the herd. Their top holdings are some of the largest stocks by market capitalization, and among the most widely held by both institutions and individual investors. New to the list this time is Meta (META), the parent company of Facebook. With a 132% return year-to-date compared with a 13% return for the S&P 500, META is back in favor with individual investors, while Apple (AAPL) and Microsoft (MSFT) still dominate the top 𒀰ten favorite stocks𝐆 held by our readers.

Top Terms of the Year—Readers' Picks

Every year, cnjem.compiles our unique list of the most searched terms by our readers across our website. We will reveal that list in just a few weeks, but we polled our readers for their top terms of the year in this most recent survey to see what has been top of mind for them throughout an eventful 2023. Here are our readers’ picks for top terms of 2023: