BOSTON, Oct. 1, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Investor sentiment
has remained stable since the third quarter of 2013, according to
the John Hancock Investor Sentiment Index®, a quarterly measure of
investors' views on a range of investment choices, life goals, and
economic outlook. For the third quarter of 2014, the Index score
remained at +23, as it has for each quarter to date of 2014. For
the fourth quarter of 2013 and the third quarter of 2013, the Index
score was +22 and +20, respectively. The positive score in
these recent quarters has been driven by investors' optimistic
views toward investing in stocks, balanced mutual funds comprised
of stocks and bonds, and stock mutual funds.
The John Hancock Investor Sentiment Index® reflects the
percentage of investors who say they believe it is a "good" or
"very good" time to invest, minus those who feel the opposite. The
third quarter survey was conducted in late August.
"In many key areas of their economic lives, such as investing in
stocks and mutual funds, buying a house and saving for retirement,
investors are indicating a positive outlook and have done so for
more than a year," said Megan
Greene, Chief Economist, John Hancock Asset Management.
"Half of the investors surveyed also felt they are in a
better financial position compared with two years ago, and half
expect their situation will continue to improve in the years ahead.
This measure has remained steady for the past four quarters
too."
Forty-one percent of those currently working (not retired) say
that saving for retirement is their most important financial
priority. Investors' sentiment toward investing in retirement plans
such as 401(k)s and IRAs is overwhelmingly positive with 83 percent
and 81 percent, respectively, saying now is a good time to put
funds away. Also popular with investors are Target Risk funds and
Target Date Funds, with 42 percent and 41 percent holding positive
views of those asset allocation funds.
The future is not without worry, however, investors say.
Political gridlock in Washington,
DC and the cost of healthcare continue to be issues of great
concern, with 54 percent of investors saying they are "very"
concerned. Sixty-four percent worry about being able to
afford high-quality health care, and 57 percent worry about being
able to afford nursing or long-term care if needed.
Four in ten investors (41 percent) are very concerned about the
unrest in the Middle East. The
percentage greatly concerned about this topic has increased
significantly from the end of 2013 when 29 percent were very
concerned.
About the John Hancock Investor Sentiment Survey
John Hancock's Investor
Sentiment Survey is a quarterly poll of affluent investors.
The survey measures investors' feelings about the current economic
climate and their evaluations of what represents a good or bad
investment given the current environment. The poll also asks
consumers about their confidence in reaching key financial goals
and their attitudes toward specific financial products and
services. This online survey was conducted by independent research
firm Greenwald & Associates. A total of 1,203 investors
were surveyed from August 11th to August
22nd, 2014. To qualify, respondents were required to
participate at least to some extent in their household's financial
decision-making process, have a household income of at least
$75,000, and assets of $100,000 or more. The data were weighted by
age and education to reflect the population of Americans matching
the survey's qualification requirements. In a similarly-sized
random sample survey, the margin of error would be plus or minus
2.88 percentage points at the 95 percent confidence level.
Due to rounding and missing categories, numbers presented may not
always total to 100 percent.
About John Hancock Financial and Manulife
John Hancock Financial is a division of Manulife, a leading
Canada-based financial services
group with principal operations in Asia, Canada
and the United States. Operating
as Manulife in Canada and
Asia, and primarily as John
Hancock in the United States, our
group of companies offers clients a diverse range of financial
protection products and wealth management services through its
extensive network of employees, agents and distribution partners.
Funds under management by Manulife and its subsidiaries were
C$637 billion (US$597 billion) as at June
30 2014. Manulife Financial Corporation trades as 'MFC' on
the TSX, NYSE and PSE, and under '945' on the SEHK. Manulife can be
found on the Internet at manulife.com.
The John Hancock unit, through its insurance companies,
comprises one of the largest life insurers in the United States. John Hancock offers and administers a broad range
of financial products, including life insurance, annuities,
investments, 401(k) plans, long-term care insurance, college
savings, and other forms of business insurance. Additional
information about John Hancock may be found at johnhancock.com.
SOURCE John Hancock Financial