• Subscribe
  • Log In
  • Home
  • Daily Diary
  • Asset Class
    • U.S. Equity
    • Fixed Income
    • Global Equity
    • Commodities
    • Currencies
  • Sector
    • Basic Materials
    • Consumer Discretionary
    • Consumer Staples
    • Energy
    • Financial Services
    • Healthcare
    • Industrials
    • Real Estate
    • Technology
    • Telecom Services
    • Transportation
    • Utilities
  • Latest
    • Articles
    • Video
    • Columnist Conversations
    • Best Ideas
    • Stock of the Day
  • Street Notes
  • Authors
    • Bruce Kamich
    • Doug Kass
    • Jim "Rev Shark" DePorre
    • Helene Meisler
    • Jonathan Heller
    • - See All -
  • Options
  • RMPIA
  • Switch Product
    • Action Alerts PLUS
    • Quant Ratings
    • Real Money
    • Real Money Pro
    • Retirement
    • Stocks Under $10
    • TheStreet
    • Top Stocks
    • TheStreet Smarts
  1. Home
  2. / Investing
  3. / Stocks

Anxious Investors Keep Market Moving Up

Climbing the Wall of Worry, FOMO and dip buying are working in tandem right now to create very strong momentum.
By JAMES "REV SHARK" DEPORRE
Feb 12, 2019 | 01:53 PM EST

The market is a steamroller Tuesday as it barrels upward on very positive breadth. The action today is a very good illustration of a number of dynamics.

First, as I discussed in my opening post, we are climbing a Wall of Worry. There is a high level of cash as many market players have not embraced the recent rally. They are worried that whatever it was that drove the market down in the fourth quarter is still lurking. There is a large supply of bears who are convinced the economy will start slowing and that a recession will follow.

There is a long list of worries. But when the market goes up, like it is Tuesday, then those folks that are holding idle cash start to worry they are wrong. They start to inch in and do more buying, and that buying causes stocks to rise more, which, in turn, causes them to worry more about not having more money invested.

Climbing the Wall of Worry goes hand-in-hand with Fear of Missing Out (FOMO). FOMO intensifies as market strength continues. Nothing is worse for a money manager than lagging their benchmark index. If you are lagging, you have no choice but to put more money to work. That causes the climbing the Wall of Worry thing to develop further too.

Another dynamic this sort of action produces is aggressive dip buying. Many fund managers hate the idea of buying strength. They constantly want to lower their basis. They want pullbacks in good stocks. When momentum is strong, those pullbacks are shallow and the dip buyers are typically more aggressive.

Climbing the Wall of Worry, Fear of Missing Out and dip buying are all working in tandem right now to create very strong momentum. Action like this tends to stay sticky to the upside, so don't be in a rush to fade it. A news headline like the border deal falling apart could cause a shift, but without any negative headlines the path of least resistance is up.

Get an email alert each time I write an article for Real Money. Click the "+Follow" next to my byline to this article.

At the time of publication, James "Rev Shark" DePorre had no positions in the stocks mentioned.

TAGS: Investing | Markets | Stocks | Trading

More from Stocks

Holy Fed, Batman! FAANG Has a Major Toothache!

Jim Collins
Feb 3, 2023 12:23 PM EST

Here's why the markets are sounding a lot like the campy 'Batman' show -- and how to make sure you don't succumb to the market's Joker.

Apple Is Far Better Positioned Than Amazon or Alphabet: Here's the Trade

Stephen Guilfoyle
Feb 3, 2023 12:20 PM EST

One thing is clear: Apple's disappointments are far more correctable, and their cash flow is more diversified than either AMZN or GOOGL.

Why Is Sector Allocation So Important Now?

Maleeha Bengali
Feb 3, 2023 11:00 AM EST

The fact of the matter is that the Fed knows as much as the market does, or perhaps even less.

Is This Market More Than Overdue for a Pause?

Bret Jensen
Feb 3, 2023 10:30 AM EST

We are probably at or very near the highs the market will provide at least through the first half of year.

Is Redfin's Stock Ready to Make a Sustained Recovery?

Bruce Kamich
Feb 3, 2023 9:04 AM EST

RDFN will need more compelling base building.

Real Money's message boards are strictly for the open exchange of investment ideas among registered users. Any discussions or subjects off that topic or that do not promote this goal will be removed at the discretion of the site's moderators. Abusive, insensitive or threatening comments will not be tolerated and will be deleted. Thank you for your cooperation. If you have questions, please contact us here.

Email

CANCEL
SUBMIT

Email sent

Thank you, your email to has been sent successfully.

DONE

Oops!

We're sorry. There was a problem trying to send your email to .
Please contact customer support to let us know.

DONE

Please Join or Log In to Email Our Authors.

Email Real Money's Wall Street Pros for further analysis and insight

Already a Subscriber? Login

Columnist Conversation

  • 11:35 AM EST JAMES "REV SHARK" DEPORRE

    This Weekend on Real Money

    Trading an Irrational Market
  • 02:10 PM EST REAL MONEY

    Fed Rate Decision

    Fed Lifts Benchmark Rate by 25 Basis Points, Sees ...
  • 12:27 PM EST REAL MONEY

    LIVE EVENT: Chris Versace and "Sarge" Guilfoyle Share Their Stock Market Insights

    This Monday, Jan. 30, at 12 p.m., our very own exp...
  • See More

COLUMNIST TWEETS

  • A Twitter List by realmoney
About Privacy Terms of Use

© 1996-2023 TheStreet, Inc., 225 Liberty Street, 27th Floor, New York, NY 10281

Need Help? Contact Customer Service

Except as otherwise indicated, quotes are delayed. Quotes delayed at least 20 minutes for all exchanges. Market Data & Company fundamental data provided by FactSet. Earnings and ratings provided by Zacks. Mutual fund data provided by Valueline. ETF data provided by Lipper. Powered and implemented by FactSet Digital Solutions Group.

TheStreet Ratings updates stock ratings daily. However, if no rating change occurs, the data on this page does not update. The data does update after 90 days if no rating change occurs within that time period.

FactSet calculates the Market Cap for the basic symbol to include common shares only. Year-to-date mutual fund returns are calculated on a monthly basis by Value Line and posted mid-month.

Compare Brokers

Please Join or Log In to manage and receive alerts.

Follow Real Money's Wall Street Pros to receive real-time investing alerts

Already a Subscriber? Login