GS Coppersmith US EQUITIES tougher internals

GS Coppersmith - US EQUITIES tougher internals 20 Sep 2026 Lee Coppersmith · Goldman Sachs · FICC & Equities Sun 20 Sep 2026, 8:16pm ET

In our conversations, a lot of investors seem increasingly uncomfortable with this market. Despite the index price action remaining resilient through more hawkish policy pricing, continued geopolitical uncertainty and an ongoing debate around the durability of the AI trade, navigating the daily swings underneath has proved difficult. Client performance shows some of this challenge: the GS Equity Fundamental L/S Performance Estimate fell -1.02% between 9/11 and 9/17 versus +0.35% for MSCI World TR, driven by -0.95% of alpha on the back of long-side losses and another -0.07% from beta.

Breadth has become another pretty clear indication of how much harder the tape has been than the headline index suggests. Less than 30% of S&P stocks are now above the 50-day moving average.

Sentiment has deteriorated alongside it. Our GS Sentiment Indicator - an aggregate measure of US equity positioning - fell to -0.9, its lowest level in over a year.

The latest AAII survey was similarly negative: bearish sentiment jumped 14pts week-over-week to 53.3%, its highest level since May 2025, while bullish sentiment fell to 28.8% and the bull-bear spread dropped to -24.5pts.

All that said, the flows picture is not completely one-way. The latest EPFR data showed $79.3bn flowing into equities last week, including $63.8bn into US stocks - the fastest pace of US equity buying in three months.