S&P 500 To Hit 2050 Driven By Stock Buybacks: Goldman

Given the end of the mandatory pause in corporate buybacks prior to earnings reports that removes a key source of equity demand, Goldman Sachs analysts anticipate S&P 500 will rally to touch their year-end 2014 target of 2050.

David J. Kostin and the team at Goldman Sachs in their recent research report titled: “US Weekly Kickstart” point out that the drivers of this upward move relate to positioning, sentiment and historical trading patterns.

Buybacks set to resume

According to the Goldman Sachs analysts, most companies are precluded from engaging in open-market stock repurchases during the five weeks before releasing earnings. Interestingly, for several firms, the beginning of the blackout period coincided with the S&P 500 peak of September 18. Thus, the...