October 19, 2020 BARRON’S 21
BIG
MONEY
POLL
ByNICHOLAS JASINSKI
2020
The
After a tumultuous year, money
managers are bullish on 2021’s prospects
for stocks, especially tech. Here’s why.
S
o far, 2020 has featured a coronavirus pan-
demic, a recession, the impeachment trial of
the nation’s chief executive, a bear market, a
bull market, and a contentious presidential
campaign. The coming year could be just as
eventful, and it’s no wonder that investors are having a
tough time getting a clear read on it. The path of the eco-
nomic recovery and corporate profits, an eventual elec-
tion winner, and a pivotal Covid-19 vaccine are just a few
of the factors that money managers will have to grapple
with. Today’s lofty stock prices and rock-bottom interest
rates make positioning for 2021 a still greater challenge.
Even as they weigh these uncertainties, 54% of re-
spondents to our latest Big Money poll say they’re bullish
on the prospects for U.S. stocks in the next 12 months.
Roughly a third describe themselves as neutral, and the
remaining 13% are bearish. But after this year’s spectacu-
lar snapback rally, which saw the S&P 500 index climb
55% from its mid-March bear-market lows, few Big
Money managers would venture to call stocks under-
Illustration byMARIO WAGNER• Icons byHARRY CAMPBELL valued. About 44% see the U.S. market as overvalued,