Analysts will have to "raise their numbers" for 2009, said Bob Doll. The BlackRock vice chairman offered his optimistic market outlook to CNBC.
"I'm not going to pretend we're in a good economy; we're in a 'less bad' economy. But some [analysts] have gone too far to the negative side," Doll said.
"Two months ago, it looked like a black hole. Now, we have a much more balanced picture."
"As the [earnings] numbers are coming in for the first quarter, they continue to be less bad. We're getting a better picture on the topline. Cost-cutting helped; clearly, there's some reduction in inventory."
"That's a lot of the reason why investors are coming away from the zero-return cash items they had and buying some risk assets."
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Doll conceded that such cost-cutting has inherent limitations: "Eventually, yes, we will have to grow the topline. But that will come with the massive stimulus and the exhaustion of, the reduction of, inventories."
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Bank of America
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