HighTower Advisors

As the equity market continues to rally, the consensus among investors has called for a 3-5% pullback. Unfortunately for the market bears, "the pain trade remains higher right now." There are many who claim that equities are "overbought" or that stocks are "too extended." As market strategist Barry Ritholtz stated, "We find it hard to believe that after hiding under a rock for nearly five years, that a few months of equity inflows means investors have gone from petrified to exuberant. That process in our opinion is a longer arc, not a singular event."

Warren Buffet once remarked, "If you wait for the robins, spring will be over." "Uncertainty" has been an overarching issue since the financial crisis of 2008 and one of the principal reasons that investors have remained on the sidelines away from the equity markets. As it has been a part of the investment lexicon, "uncertainty" will always exist in some capacity. In 2012, investors began by focusing on European issues, then the U.S. election, and now the fiscal cliff. In fact, when there is little uncertainty and investors appear unafraid, one should be more concerned.

As the market continues to digest the unrelenting daily news flow relating to the fiscal cliff, some investors are trying to anticipate who the big winners and losers will be as we head into 2013. Although some may worry about uncertain economic consequences, Ned Davis Research notes that history reveals that in periods of market decline between 1970 and 2000, dividend paying stocks have outperformed their stingy counterparts by 1.5% per month.

There is no shortage of cash on the sidelines. Although some investors have been sitting on a pile of cash for quite some time, there are a few catalysts on the horizon that may motivate some of that cash into the stock market.

The discussion of additional monetary easing by the Federal Reserve has been the topic du jour in recent weeks. As a result of potential additional monetary stimulus, the US dollar has experienced a decline. Also, after a weaker than expected jobs report last week, US treasuries initially rallied given an increased expectation of Fed action. However, as pointed out by the market commentators at Sober Look, the Treasury curve has begun to steepen with the "30-year bond and other longer dated treasuries steadily selling off."

In today's yield starved environment, investors continue to seek secure sources of income with the potential for growth. Energy infrastructure master limited partnerships (MLPs) have become increasingly attractive not only for their above average current yield, but for their low risk profile and ability to generate predictable cash flows backed by, in many instances, long-term tariff based contracts.

Between now and the Greek election on June 17th, I expect we will see a consistent negative bias in the equity market. According to Citigroup global equity strategist Tobias Levkovich, sentiment has shifted rapidly from complacency in March to panic in the latest readings of their Panic/Euphoria Model. He adds that these readings are a contrary indicator, in addition to valuation metrics, arguing statistically that we may see market gains over the next two or three quarters.

Winston Churchill once stated, The farther back you can look, the farther forward you are likely to see. When I look at the broader equity market, there are two areas that I find particularly attractive large integrated energy companies and large pharmaceuticals. Just twelve years ago, some of the large integrated energy companies had price-to-earnings ratios near 25x. Since that time, their earnings multiples have contracted to roughly 10x, yet some have grown their earnings per share by an impressive 250 percent over the same time period.

Changes in the direction of the reserve requirement ratio (RRR) for Chinese banks, or the minimum reserves a commercial bank must hold according to central bank regulations, have a major impact on the Chinese stock market. The RRR in China had steadily climbed from eight percent in mid-2006 to its peak of 21.5% in mid-2011. The decision in November 2011 by the Peoples Bank of China to cut the ratio by 50 basis points, which was subsequently followed by another cut just last month, appears to be the beginning of a long directional move downward in the RRR as the bank continues to ease.

Overall, people around the globe are underinvested or invested in the wrong asset classes. As data point continue to strengthen, coupled with the fact that income (and sustainability of income) are becoming a scarce commodity, a significant rally in the equity markets could ensue. As some technical analysts may suggest, the bigger the base, the higher the space. As U.S. blue chip stocks have lagged for more than ten years, they have built a base that has prepared these stocks for liftoff.

If one thing has become clear these days, macro factors increasingly determine the valuations at the micro level. Although the valuation of individual stocks used to determine the value of the market as a whole, stock selection is now subordinate to asset allocation. Even Bill Miller, the ultimate bottom-up investor, is going to lose his job after thirty years at the helm of Legg Mason Value Trust. Investors need to begin to focus on the positive signals that the market is sending us - better economic data will be a boon for the U.S. stock market.

The paradox of the stock market is that higher prices attract buyers, while lower prices attract sellers. This herd-like behavior is confirmed by peers and exaggerated even more now by social media outlets. The most important thing to acknowledge in these markets is to be tactical and buy on weakness. In our current yield starved environment, I have focused on growth and income (two such scarce resources these days) in both dividend paying large cap stocks and energy infrastructure MLPs.

The efficient frontier provides the optimal expected return for a portfolio for a given level of risk, or the lowest level of risk needed to achieve the optimal expected return. Over the years, investors have come to perceive that certain asset classes with higher risk premiums are more risky than others. We believe what many view as traditional asset allocation may be vulnerable going forward. In short, it is dynamic, not static. In todays negative real interest rate environment, investors will be well served by investing in certain asset classes perceived to be more risky.