Retail investors are piling into AI stocks, while institutional money is turning defensive
Traders work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange TIMOTHY A. CLARY / AFP via Getty Images Sentiment toward the AI trade has diverged among big money and retail investors. Retail traders piling back into the top AI plays, Citadel Securities says. Meanwhile, institutional investors are turning increasingly defensive. Everyday investors have been piling into AI bets at a moment when institutional money is playing defense. Retail is showing renewed willingness to pour money into high-flying tech stocks, adding exposure to chips, neoclouds, and other infrastructure plays in the last week. "Retail buying is picking up again, even as overall trading activity remains below average," wrote Scott Rubner of Citadel Securities. "Last week, retail net bought $9.1 billion of US equities on our platform, the largest weekly net buying in 15 weeks (since late June) and the ninth-largest week over the past year." The buying was concentrated heavily in AI play. Semiconductors ...