Institutional investors posted their biggest weekly net purchases since December 2020 as inflows favored technology, financials and industrials, while buybacks stayed above year-earlier levels.
Bank of America clients continued buying U.S. stocks for a fourth straight week even as the S&P 500 fell 0.6%. Institutional investors drove the move, recording their largest weekly net purchases since December 2020 and the second-largest since Bank of America began tracking the data in 2008. Retail investors also remained net buyers, while hedge funds were net sellers for a third consecutive week. Inflows were concentrated in technology, financials and industrials, with industrials logging a record net inflow after months of outflows. Bank of America also said corporate share buybacks slowed during earnings season but still ran 19% above the year-earlier pace over the past four weeks, helping support the stock market.