Dwyer predicted in July 2009 the S&P 500 would be above 1,060 by the end of the year. The measure closed at 1,115.10 in 2009.

"Given the sub-3 percent core inflation environment, a 15 multiple is the minimum not even the average," Dwyer said from New York. "As long as you don't go into a recession, $105 is very doable."

Start Buying
The 9.9 percent slide from April 2 through June 1 is probably ending, according to Birinyi, who said the increased bearishness is "encouraging" and recommends investors stay in equities or start buying them before the last phase of the bull market starts around September.

Of the 108 S&P 500 companies that had analyst changes in the past week, 64 percent had their ratings lowered, data compiled by Bloomberg show.

Financial markets have been battered by elections in Greece and France, concerns over Spanish banking, weakening emerging market economies such as China, India and Brazil and the 29 percent plunge in Facebook Inc. stock following the biggest technology initial public offering, according to Birinyi. That the S&P 500 has fallen just 10 percent is encouraging, he said.

"I did not anticipate that all the wheels would come off the bus," Birinyi said. "Even now, it's not the thickest ice I've ever seen. But we're not giving up on the market."

 

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