TD Ameritrade’s Investor Movement Index: Clients Were Net Buyers of Equities in April

Overall market volatility seemed to stabilize in April

TD Ameritrade, Inc. (“TD Ameritrade”), a broker-dealer subsidiary of TD Ameritrade Holding Corporation (Nasdaq: AMTD), is today releasing the Investor Movement Index® reading for April 2016. The Investor Movement Index, or the IMXSM, is a proprietary, behavior-based index created by TD Ameritrade that aggregates Main Street investor positions and activity to measure what investors are actually doing and how they are positioned in the markets.

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TD Ameritrade's IMX vs. S&P 500 Credit: TD Ameritrade (Graphic: Business Wire)

The April 2016 Investor Movement Index for the four weeks ending April 29, 2016, reveals:

Reading: 4.41 (compared to 4.33 in March)
Trend direction: Positive
Trend length: 1 month
Score relative to historic ranges: Middle

Net buying in April helped to increase the IMX to 4.41.

Overall market volatility seemed to stabilize in April, after declining from relative highs earlier in the year. Exposure to the equity markets within TD Ameritrade client accounts increased slightly, as the decline in overall market volatility helped to make the relative volatility of some widely held positions rise modestly. Net buying by TD Ameritrade clients also helped to increase the IMX.

“Clients were net buyers as volatility steadied a bit in April,” said JJ Kinahan, chief market strategist, TD Ameritrade. “This past month was also the kick-off of corporate earnings season so we saw many clients make investment decisions based on those reports.”

While market volatility stabilized, the S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average saw gains of around 1.5%, while the Russell 2000 gained more than 4% and the NASDAQ Composite was essentially flat. Crude oil prices continued their rally in April, after a brief dip to begin the month, closing the period above $45 a barrel. The Federal Reserve Board met again in April and announced that there would be no change to their key rate, citing lack of progress towards their goal of 2% inflation. The Fed maintained the economic outlook they gave in March and reiterated that any future rate increases would be dependent upon economic data.

Dividend paying stocks appeared to be popular in April as AT&T Inc. (T), Ford Motor Co. (F) and Wells Fargo & Co. (WFC) were each net buys. AT&T and Ford’s dividend yields are both above 4%, and Wells Fargo’s yield is around 3%. Facebook Inc. (FB) was also a net buy as it reached a new all-time high following its earnings announcement. The company’s shares surged in afterhours trading and opened nearly 10% higher the next day. Popular apparel company Under Armour Inc. (UA) also announced earnings in April and was a net buy. Its shares were essentially flat for the month.

Despite being net buyers overall, TD Ameritrade clients were net sellers of some popular names that have seen rebounds in price so far this year. Although widely held by TD Ameritrade clients, Apple Inc. (AAPL) was net sold prior to announcing earnings late in the month. The stock has rebounded since posting a new 52 week low in late January. Ali Baba Holdings (BABA) is another popular name that has rebounded since late January. It was net sold for a second month. Oil Producer Chevron Corp. (CVX) has seen its value rebound with the price of crude oil. The stock traded above $100 per share for the first time since June 2015 and was net sold.

The IMX value is calculated based on a complex proprietary formula. Each month, TD Ameritrade pulls a sample from its client base of 6 million funded accounts that includes all accounts that completed a trade in the past month. The holdings and positions of this statistically significant sample are evaluated to calculate individual scores, and the median of those scores represents the monthly IMX.

For more information on the Investor Movement Index, including historical IMX data going back to December 2010, to view the full report from April 2016, or to sign up for future IMX news alerts, please visit www.tdameritrade.com/IMX. Additionally, TD Ameritrade clients can chart the IMX using the symbol $IMX in either the thinkorswim® or TD Ameritrade Mobile Trader platforms.

Inclusion of specific security names in this commentary does not constitute a recommendation from TD Ameritrade to buy, sell, or hold.

Past performance of a security, strategy or index is no guarantee of future results or investment success.

Historical data should not be used alone when making investment decisions. Please consult other sources of information and consider your individual financial position and goals before making an independent investment decision.

The IMX is not a tradable index. The IMX should not be used as an indicator or predictor of future client trading volume or financial performance for TD Ameritrade.

For the latest TD Ameritrade news and information, follow the Company on Twitter, @TDAmeritradePR.

Source: TD Ameritrade Holding Corporation

About TD Ameritrade Holding Corporation

Millions of investors and independent registered investment advisors (RIAs) have turned to TD Ameritrade’s (Nasdaq: AMTD) technology, people and education to help make investing and trading easier to understand and do. Online or over the phone. In a branch or with an independent RIA. First-timer or sophisticated trader. Our clients want to take control, and we help them decide how — bringing Wall Street to Main Street for more than 40 years. An official sponsor of the 2014 and 2016 U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Teams, TD Ameritrade has time and again been recognized as a leader in investment services. Please visit TD Ameritrade’s newsroom or www.amtd.com for more information.

Brokerage services provided by TD Ameritrade, Inc., member FINRA (www.FINRA.org)/SIPC (www.SIPC.org)

View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20160509005452/en/

TD Ameritrade, Inc.For Media:Beth Evegan, 859-331-2391Communications & Public Affairsbeth.evegan@tdameritrade.com@TDAmeritradePRorFor Investors:Jeff Goeser, 402-597-8464Investor Relations & Financejeffrey.goeser@tdameritrade.com

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