Stocks are unlikely to repeat last year’s record-shattering performance in 2021 as a V-shaped recovery is largely priced in, Morgan Stanley says

Stocks are unlikely to repeat last year’s record-shattering performance in 2021 as a V-shaped recovery is largely priced in, Morgan Stanley says

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While the economy is "very likely" to have a good year in 2021, stock prices may not repeat their record-shattering performance of 2020 as a V-shaped recovery has already been priced into the market, said Morgan Stanley's Mike Wilson.The chief investment officer explained that the stock market is a discounting machine that looks forward, and it already priced in optimism around the economic recovery last year.Against this backdrop, "unprofitable growth stocks with big valuations" may underperform in 2021, while assets that will benefit from accelerating economic growth like  small-cap stocks, financials, and materials will benefit. Sign up here for our daily newsletter, 10 Things Before the Opening Bell.

2021 is "very likely" to be a good year for the economy and earnings growth, but the stock market may not soar like it did last year, according to Morgan Stanley's Mike Wilson. 

That's because the stock market is a discounting machine that looks forward, and it already priced in optimism around the economic recovery in 2020, when the S&P 500 rocketed off of its March lows and closed the year with a 16% annual gain, Wilson explained on an episode of the Thoughts on the Market podcast.

"We have more confidence