Retail investors stayed bullish on U.S. stocks heading into the new year, but not as bullish as they were at the start of 2014, according to a proprietary sentiment indicator from TD Ameritrade.
The firm's Investment Movement Index—which, unlike other sentiment indicators, tracks actual buying and selling in TD's 6 million-plus funded accounts—came in at 5.12 in December, up from 5.11 in November, according to a just released report. That level is down from the 5.62 reading in December 2013. The index touched a record level of 5.87 last March.
"Our clients maintained a favorable outlook on equities, and were net buyers overall in December," Managing Director of Trading Nicole Sherrod said in a statement.
Perhaps more interesting is what retail investors bought.
