ROCKVILLE, Md., Feb. 27, 2012 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The Advisor Confidence Index (ACI), a benchmark that gauges advisor views on the U.S. economy and stock market, reports that advisor confidence increased in February with the index rising over 5% from January levels to close at 107.83.
"Just as the pendulum swung to negative in late summer and early fall last year, it has swung (to be) too optimistic as February unfolds," said James Dailey, financial advisor with TEAM Financial Managers. "…I expect the broad stock market averages to trade in a wide range in the coming months, as markets adjust to a 'blah' reality," he said.
Among the four components of the ACI, stock market confidence, which decreased slightly over last month, was the only negative showing. "Problems in Europe will soon come to a head, with the outcome far from clear. The U.S. economy and markets will go along for the ride," said Steven Brill, financial advisor with Spielberger Dampf Brill & Levine LLC.
| Current economic outlook | 6.13% |
| Six-month economic outlook | 11.72% |
| 12-month economic outlook | 4.00% |
| Stock market outlook | -.30% |
Charts accompanying this release are available at http://media.globenewswire.com/cache/17674/file/12680.pdf
Further Comments from Participating Advisors
"Consumer spending, which was fueled by borrowing during the last quarter, might slow down without further unemployment rate reduction."
Scott Kubie, CLS Investments
"As disturbing world news events continue to unfold and the domestic political rhetoric escalates, increased volatility in the equity markets should be expected. However, this does not dampen our longer term optimism for positive equity returns occurring and outperforming fixed income securities for the foreseeable future."
Rob Siegmann, Financial Management Group
About Advisor Confidence Index's Methodology
The Advisor Confidence Index is a benchmark that gauges advisors' views on the economy. Modeled after the Conference Board Consumer Confidence Index®, the ACI captures the sentiments of 150 independent registered investment advisors (RIAs). The index's analysis is based on the number of completed surveys and reflects only information from those surveys. This information is intended to be general in nature, and these overviews are no substitute for professional, legal, or consulting advice. This information should not be construed as advice from Rydex|SGI AdvisorBenchmarking, Inc. or any of its affiliates.
About Rydex|SGI AdvisorBenchmarking, an affiliate of Rydex|SGI
Rydex|SGI AdvisorBenchmarking is a research and analysis center focused on the registered investment advisor (RIA) marketplace. Every year through its survey website, www.AdvisorBenchmarking.com, the firm conducts multiple surveys of advisors, covering a host of business management and investment management practices. The findings and analysis of the data are then released to the marketplace as annual studies, quarterly research notes, monthly newsletters, and a confidence index. The service is aimed at helping advisors grow and enhance their firms by comparing how their businesses fare against other advisors. Advisors also learn best practices of the most successful advisors in the business. AdvisorBenchmarking is an affiliate of Rydex|SGI.
