Trader Talk Profits, the Fed, and where sector leadership goes next
Dec 17, 2025
Keith Lerner, Chief Investment Officer and Chief Market Strategist at Truist, shares a concise market playbook. He discusses how resilient corporate profits sustained 2025, why patience can beat frequent trading, the Fed’s likely gradual path, and why tech and AI leadership may persist alongside healthcare and small caps. He also touches on tactical tilts and a modest GDP outlook for 2026.
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Patience Beats Activity
- Wealth compounds through patience, not frantic trading, and long-term holders capture outsized gains.
- Kenny Polcari warns that frequent trading resets compounding and often prevents investors from reaching big payoffs.
Profits Drove The Bull Market
- Keith Lerner cites resilient corporate profits as the primary driver of the 2025 bull market.
- He highlights record-high profits and margins despite macro turbulence as the market's north star.
Modest Growth Expected In 2026
- Truist expects U.S. GDP to rise to about 2.3% in 2026 from 1.8% in 2025.
- Lerner attributes the uptick to modest rate cuts, tax relief, tariff stabilization, and AI-driven CapEx.