Episode summary
Why US Stocks Could Climb Higher
The Markets
· · 10 min · Hosts: Chris Hussey · Guests: John Flood
Summary
John Flood said the recent volatility does not change his core view that US stocks remain in “buy dip mode.” He pointed to the coming Russell rebalance, record trading activity, and heavy portfolio repositioning across retail, institutional, and corporate accounts as signs that volatility is likely to continue, but within a still-positive trend for equities.
On supply, he argued that the market has absorbed a surge in issuance better than expected, including two June deals totaling $140 billion notional, while retail buying has remained a steady source of demand. He also said buybacks are broadening beyond the Mag Seven, with smaller companies increasingly active, and he expects 2026 to be a record year for repurchases by both notional amount and number of issuers.
Flood’s preferred themes are semis, semi equipment, and select exposure in Korea and Taiwan. He said the market is crowded in those areas for a reason, and that there are also attractive entry points in parts of the Mag Seven. The biggest risk he sees is rates: the market is pricing in 40 basis points of hikes by year-end, but he thinks the Goldman Sachs economists are right and that no hike would effectively be bullish for stocks.
Key takeaways
- John Flood said US stocks are still in buy dip mode despite higher volatility and record trading volumes.
- He said the market absorbed $140 billion of June issuance without blinking, helped by consistent retail demand.
- Flood expects 2026 to be a record year for buybacks as repurchase activity broadens beyond the Mag Seven.
- He sees semis, semi equipment, Korea and Taiwan as the clearest momentum trades.
- Flood said the main risk is higher rates, but he does not expect the Fed to hike again this year.
Notable quotes
“I still think that we're in buy dip mode”
“what that tells me is that you have a lot of investors from all different cohorts, whether it be retail, institutional, corporate, moving portfolios around”
“I actually think that there's some attractive entry points within the Mag Seven complex right now”
“the market's pricing in 40 basis points of hikes between now and year-end”
“earnings have been fantastic and they should continue to be”
How the episode opens
This is The Markets. I'm Chris Hussey, and today is Thursday, June 25th, and I'm here on the Goldman Sachs trading floor with John Flood, who is head of America's Equity Sales Trading within Global Banking and Markets. Floody, thanks for joining us.
Thank you for having me. All right. I want to get into a whole lot of different things that I know are top of mind for you, but first I want to talk about the markets this week, because they've started to get volatile again.
What do you make of it? Is the tech trade starting to show some cracks, or is this a time to buy any dips? I still think that we're in buy dip mode.
Reminder that we're stepping into the Russell rebalance tomorrow, which we typically see bouts of volatility heading into. And a week ago, from today, as we were just talking about the Knicks parade, which was awesome- go Knicks, we actually had 34 billion shares trade across all US equity exchanges. That's the most active trading session in the history of the stock market.
That broke the record made on Liberation Day in 2025. So what that tells me is that you have a lot of investors from all different cohorts, whether it be retail, institutional, corporate, moving portfolios around. So I do think that the volatility will continue, but I do think general trend for this market is higher, and dips still present solid buying opportunities.
That's pretty awesome. I didn't appreciate that two million people downtown Manhattan watching the Knicks, and we get the biggest trading day in the history. That pretty awesome, good thing that we no longer have to do the physical trading at the New York Stock Exchange.
That would've been difficult. All right. Let's get into the supply, because supply's a big factor here.
From the episode’s captions: roughly the first two minutes, lightly cleaned. Keep watching on YouTube →
Topics
- us stocks
- earnings
- technical analysis
- market volatility
- equity execution
Companies and tickers mentioned
- GS
- Goldman Sachs
Watch the episode
Watch “Why US Stocks Could Climb Higher” on YouTube
Summary, takeaways and quote selection by Octagon. Quotes are short excerpts; the full conversation is in the episode.
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