Savage: At Investor Forum, Optimism Bubbles Up

A large, but subdued, crowd of investors gathered last week in Orlando, Fla., for the annual World Money Show. When asked for their outlook, a third of the audience predicted the Dow would linger around 8,000 points for a decade, similar to the 1970s, when the index stayed at 800 for almost 12 years.

Pessimism abounded, but each investment guru could find at least one sector worthy of investment. However, there were many conflicting viewpoints and suggestions.

The most optimistic view came from one of my favorite stock analysts, Jim Stack of InvesTech Research, who said we're likely nearing the end of the recession. That, of course, doesn't guarantee a strong rebound. ...