By Brett Palatiello :
In another post ( Beta Exposure ), I spoke about conditions that have historically preceded significant market downturns. These were overvalued, overbought, and rising yield conditions. It is very important to continue monitoring other market internals that could raise risk premiums.
There are a number of different market internals that I have been investigating, and all of them have a solid theoretical underpinning. As a supplement to the overvalued and risingrates conditions, I have added the performance of small cap stocks relative to large cap stocks, utilities, and consumer stocks, all of which are interest-rate sensitive. Utilities are considered "bond-like" due to their safety and yields, so when rates begin to rise, they start to look unfavorable from a yield perspective. Small cap stocks are inherently riskier. Some demand high liquidity premia, carry heavy debt loads as a result of expansion, and are generally more speculative. Finally, consumer stocks can be influenced by macroeconomic factors and can be adversely affected by tightening credit conditions.
The criteria I have chosen are as follows:
- CAPE > 18
- Utilities
- Small cap stocks underperforming large cap stocks by
- Consumer stocks
- Rising Fed Funds Rate
If all of these conditions have occurred at least once in the past 3 months, a signal is given.
This signal has clearly captured all of the large historical drawdowns.
In 1995, there was an early false signal. The next batch of signals came from the end of 1998 to 2000. It is important to remember that the 2000 collapse wiped out all the returns, in excess of Treasury bills, all the way back to 1996. Also, the 2008 decline wiped out excess returns all the way back to 1995.
Based on various market internals that I monitor, including the above, there are currently no signals generated, despite the gross overvaluation that will remain a headwind for long-term returns.
Disclosure: I have no positions in any stocks mentioned, and no plans to initiate any positions within the next 72 hours. I wrote this article myself, and it expresses my own opinions. I am not receiving compensation for it. I have no business relationship with any company whose stock is mentioned in this article.
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The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.
The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.
