The world's richest investors want stocks to drop before buying back in, UBS poll reveals

• Investors and business owners are largely optimistic about the global economy's long-term trajectory, but 60% are waiting for a second stock market dip before buying more shares, a UBS poll published Wednesday revealed.
• About one-quarter of investors view the current environment as a good time to buy equities, while 16% see it as an unattractive bear market.
• Some 60% of respondents expect a recession within the next 12 months, according to the UBS poll.
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The world's wealthiest investors are still optimistic about the economy's long-term prospects but don't plan to buy more stocks until prices stage a second plunge, according to a UBS poll published Wednesday.

Of the 4,108 investors and business owners surveyed, roughly 70% are optimistic about their region's economic performance over the next decade. The metric is largely unchanged from its last reading three months prior. The proportion of respondents with short-term optimism sank to 46% from 67% over the period as the coronavirus pandemic slashed business activity and plunged economies into deep recessions.

The investors see opportunity in the battered stock market, but 61% of respondents are waiting until prices slide between 5% and 20% before taking on more risk. About one-quarter of investors see the current environment as a good time to buy equities, and 16% still deem it a bear market.

Read more: A former software engineer quit a 6-figure job and started investing in real estate full-time. He shares the popular 5-part strategy he's leveraging and exactly what he looks for in a deal.

Just under half of those surveyed don't plan to adjust their portfolios, and 37% plan to invest more as prices retrace roughly half of their virus-fueled losses.

Stocks' hot streak through April has cooled amid heightened oil market volatility and continued fear of a prolonged downturn. The S&P 500 has soared more than 20% from its March 23 low but remains well under its record highs as investors wait for the economy to reopen.

About 60% of investors view a recession as "highly likely" within the next 12 months, according to UBS's poll. Their sentiments were backed up Wednesday morning, when US GDP data revealed a 4.8% plunge in the first quarter. The release marked the official conclusion of the US's record-long economic expansion and trounced analysts' expectation of a 3.8% contraction.

A recession is commonly defined as two quarters of negative GDP growth.

UBS surveyed investors and business owners with more than $1 million in investable assets or annual revenue in 14 markets between April 1 and April 20.

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