Without corporate earnings driving the market forward, stocks are set for more volatility, experts told CNBC's "Power Lunch" Friday.
First-quarter earnings season, when most public companies report their quarterly results, came in like a lion and went out like a lamb. The Dow Jones industrial average clinched a four-week win streak Friday, gaining more than 220 points at session highs just a month after the stock market's last bottom, when it lost much as 411 points in the Feb. 11 session.
Despite the recent rally, the same unanswered questions linger about the strength of China's economy, the direction of the dollar and the rate of U.S. interest rate increases, said Mark Luschini, chief investment strategist at Janney Capital Management.
"Global economic conditions don't necessarily warrant this vibrant of a move so quickly," Luschini said.
Forty percent of the names within the S&P 500 are still in bear market territory, according to back-of-the-envelope estimates by G. Scott Clemons, chief investment strategist at Brown Brothers Harriman.
"Until there's more direction for this market coming from corporate earnings, I think we're in for more of this volatility, both on the upside and on the downside," Clemons said.
But the recent market carnage may have left some value in a number of sectors, Clemons said. For instance, as the oil sector mops up the mess of low oil prices, certain companies may be "extraordinarily well positioned," according to Clemons.
"After the dotcom boom and bust there were a handful of companies that not only survived but thrived," Clemons said. "We think oil and energy are going through the same kind of thing."
Luschini's picks are more defensive, focusing on the consumer. Wal-Mart and AT&T stick out because of sound dividend policies, Luschini said.