The AAII Investor Sentiment Survey is a weekly survey of stock market sentiment amongst individual investors in the US. The survey is widely used as a contrarian indicator<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The American Association of Individual Investors<\/em><\/a> is a nonprofit organization representing individual investors. It aims to educate and assist investors by providing education on stock market portfolios, financial planning and retirement accounts. Founded in 1978, the AAII has conducted the sentiment survey since 1987.<\/p>\n\n\n The AAII sentiment survey comprises a single question: What Direction Do AAII Members Feel The Stock Market Will Be In The Next 6 Months? <\/em>Just three answers are possible: bullish<\/strong>, neutral <\/strong>or bearish<\/strong>.\u00a0<\/p><\/div>\n\n\n Survey results are published weekly, and simply consist of the percentage of respondents that fall into each category.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The AAII Investor Sentiment Survey provides three readings and is regarded as a contrarian indicator. The idea behind an indicator like this is that sentiment is bullish at market tops and bearish at market bottoms. When too many investors are bullish, a selloff becomes more likely, and when too many investors are bearish a rally becomes more likely.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Investors should consider all three levels, although individual readings also provide information.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The percentage for each category should be compared to its historical high, low and average level. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Bullish percentage<\/strong> – If the percentage of bullish responses is high, too many investors may be optimistic about the stock market. This implies that investors are already long, and there may be no more buyers to take prices higher.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Neutral percentage<\/strong> – If the percentage of neutral responses is high it suggests a high level of uncertainty amongst investors. This also implies that investors are building up cash, which increases buying power for the future. Alternatively, a low percentage of neutral responses indicates that investors are more certain about the direction of the stock market and are positioned accordingly. This can lead to large moves in the index if a new trend develops in either direction.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Bearish percentage<\/strong> – If the percentage of bearish responses is high, there may be too many bearish investors. This implies that investors have already reduced exposure and are ready to start buying again.<\/p>\n\n\n\n For the week ending 26 January 2022, the sentiment levels<\/a> are:<\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/p>\n\n\n\n Bearish sentiment is the highest it has been in eight years, while bullish sentiment has risen slightly from an 18-month low recorded the previous week.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The following are the historical averages, lowest and highest reading, and standard deviation ranges for each response. This data is for the 1987 to 2022 period.<\/p>\n\n\n\nHow to interpret the AAII survey?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
What are the current AAII Sentiment Survey levels?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n