Even ‘Expert’ Investors Seek Advice in Uncertain Times

Sixty-three percent of American investors believe their investments are sufficiently diversified to mitigate the effect of a significant market event, according to survey results reported this week by asset management firm Schroders.

Despite this confidence, however, the survey found that U.S. investors are more inclined to work with financial experts in these uncertain market conditions. Forty-eight percent of participants who consider themselves as expert or advanced in their investment knowledge said they are likelier to speak with a financial advisor as interest rates rise.

Nearly as many investors said active funds are more attractive than they were six months ago, indicating that they see the added value of an active fund manager in challenging markets.

“Indeed, it is times like these when the expertise and experience of active managers becomes increasingly crucial as investors look to control their investment risk and also diversify,” Adam Farstrup, Schroders head of multi-asset product in the Americas, said in a statement.

Farstrup noted that 58% of U.S. investors in the survey agreed that the performance of their investments directly affects their mental health, “further emphasizing the critical role active managers and financial advisors have in supporting them.”

Investors’ Tempered Optimism

The survey found U.S. investors to be optimistic yet cautious in response to a more challenging economic outlook. Fifty-five percent said they had changed their investment strategy in light of rising inflation, and 51% said they were likelier to save more and spend less.

A quarter of American respondents said government bonds and cryptocurrencies were the least attractive asset classes, as appetite falls for assets that may be challenged by higher interest rates and recent negative headlines.