60% of Readers Stay Bullish Heading Into March Despite Market Volatility

Tech stocks are losing their grip on the market, but investors aren’t losing their cool. According to our latest Bear and Bull survey, 60% of readers still feel optimistic heading into March. That confidence comes despite a turbulent February, with the S&P 500 slipping 0.9% for the month and the tech-heavy Nasdaq falling 3.2%, its weakest performance since March 2025.

• The Magnificent Seven fell ~6.3% in February, while energy, materials, and consumer staples led the S&P 500 this year.
• Gold jumped 15.5% in February to $5.18K an ounce, nearly double year-ago levels, as investors sought safety amid AI-driven volatility.

Forward-looking: Fundstrat’s Tom Lee believes the Mag 7 can spark a March rebound, noting they’re trading at cheaper earnings multiples than top consumer staples names once TeslaTSLA

is excluded. He further told Barrons, “I think there’s going to be dovish data this month, because the tariffs were overturned and we know the trend in CPI has been soft.” Still, Nuveen CIO Saira Malik urges caution, noting that midterm election years typically see market pullbacks of around 18% at some point, suggesting volatility may not be over.