Fast forward to today…
In the latest measure of optimism, TD Ameritrade’s Investor Movement Index rose to 8.59 in December, its second straight monthly record. The index measures the behavior of TD Ameritrade clients, aggregating their positions and activity to measure how they are positioned.
“Retail investors ended 2017 with exposure at all-time highs. Our clients were net buyers during December, resulting in one of the longest buying streaks in the history of the [index],”
Last month, Morgan Stanley wrote that institutional investors were “loading the boat on risk,” with “long/short net and gross leverage as high as we have ever seen it.”
https://imx.tdameritrade.com/imx/p/imx-pub