Stock market interest is back on the rise: Chart – Yahoo Finance

With a brutal year for the stock market getting closer to a close, investors may be showing renewed interest in their investments as they look to take action into 2023.

Google searches for “Dow Jones” have picked up over the last month (chart below), according to findings compiled by DataTrek Research. The Dow Jones Industrial Average is often seen as the most commonly used metric for stocks by the average U.S. household.

The return of interest in the stock market. (DataTrek)

DataTrek noted that queries for “Dow Jones” are still down 18% from the week of the June low in the markets, however — underscoring how pressured stock prices have caused many investors to hide their heads in the sand.

To be sure, investors showing interest in the stock market again return facing a host of headwinds that makes taking action of any kind difficult.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI), S&P 500 (^GSPC), and Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) remain mired in double-digit percentage declines for the year as the Federal Reserve aggressively raises interest rates to beat back inflation. A stronger U.S. dollar has weighed on sentiment too, culminating in sales warnings from large multinationals like Nike and FedEx.

A woman passes by the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) during the morning commute in New York City, U.S., October 21, 2016. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid — A woman passes by the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York City, U.S., October 21, 2016. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid

The tone in markets may not get much better into year-end as companies use the coming earnings season to warn about future economic growth and stubbornly high costs.

Wall Street analysts expect 3% year-over-year EPS growth for S&P 500 companies for the third quarter, 13% sales growth, and 75 basis points of margin contraction to 11.8%, according to data crunched by Goldman Sachs. Just several months ago, analysts were anticipating 10% EPS growth for the third quarter for S&P 500 companies.

Excluding the energy sector (which has seen posting triple-digit profit growth), EPS is expected to fall by 3% and margins are projected to contract by 132 basis points.

The negative backdrop does raise an interesting question.

Are investors showing renewed interest in stocks to buy on the pullback? Or are they doing their research to figure out how best to limit losses and get out?

“I think the interest is about how to get out,” TheStreet Founder Jim Cramer tweeted to me (below).

Brian Sozzi is an editor-at-large and anchor at Yahoo Finance. Follow Sozzi on Twitter @BrianSozzi and on LinkedIn.

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