The S&P 500 Just Matched a Record ‘Good Breadth' Streak. What It Means for Returns Ahead.

Karishma Vanjani, Barron's

January 21, 2025 at 12:00 AM UTC

In a recent report, SentimenTrader's founder Jason Goepfert highlighted a rare market breadth streak, with over 68% of S&P 500 stocks advancing for five consecutive days. Historical data suggests this pattern often leads to further gains, though exception

The stock market did great last week, but did you notice the record streak of breadth?

In each of the last five trading days, at least 68% of S&P 500 stocks advanced. That's the first time so many stocks have advanced without a break since 2019. Since 1937, there have been only 7 instances when more than 68% of S&P 500 stocks have advanced for 5 straight days, according to Jason Goepfert, founder of Sentiment Trader.

It's "a remarkable feat," Goepfert said.

According to history, more gains could be on the way. On average, the S&P 500 rose 3.6% over the following month, with increases marked in all but one of the seven instances. After the record streak in 2011, the S&P 500 dropped 6.4% a month later, Goepfert's calculations show.