Wall Street’s new biggest bull is growling a bit like a bear. Wells Fargo Securities’ Chris Harvey hiked his S & P 500 year-end price target by about 20% this week. However, he’s less than enthusiastic about the path of higher market prices. “It’s weird. This won’t sound great. But even though we were high on the Street, I don’t feel bullish,” the firm’s head of equity strategy told CNBC’s ” Fast Money ” on Tuesday. “It’s not that ‘Wow, multiples are so cheap. Things are going to be fantastic. The economy is on fire. The Fed’s cutting rates and they’re going to start slashing tomorrow’.” Harvey, who once referred to himself during a CNBC interview as ” not a real positive guy ,” raised his official 2024 S & P 500 target to 5,535 on Monday. It implies a roughly 6% gain from Tuesday’s close of 5,209.91. Harvey made his comments on “Fast Money” a day before the Labor Department releases its March consumer price index report . He suggested the economy is in a period of malaise. Yet, he thinks stocks can still grind higher with megacap technology and growth companies leading. “You don’t need a strong economy for large cap because you’re going to get a market share shift. The winners, the higher profit, the higher growth companies are going to gain more of that market share,” said Harvey. “So, if the winners keep winning, you don’t need that growth and that’s what we’re banking on.” Between now and year-end, he recommends a balanced approach to investing. He likes an overweight in communication services and sees artificial intelligence as a secular story. “If the status quo stays, growth is good. That’s good for growth. That’s good for momentum, and it’s good for large caps,” Harvey added. “If we start to see rates go lower, well what works? Things that are out of favor: utilities , small caps , more levered companies.” Harvey’s S & P 500 2023 year-end target was 4,420. The index ended the year up 24.2% — settling at 4,769.83. Disclaimer
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