Schwab Q3 2026 Retail Client Sentiment Report

Investors turn bullish on U.S. stock market as confidence climbs despite concerns the market may be overvalued.

Key findings

Forty-seven percent of Schwab retail clients are now bullish on the U.S. stock market, a sharp increase from 28% in Q2 2026.
Among Schwab’s most active trader clients, 84% say they are at least somewhat likely to “buy the dip” if there is a notable market decline in the next three months, and 41% describe themselves as at least somewhat risk-seeking.
Forty-five percent of Schwab clients think inflation will hold steady in Q3, while 31% expect it to reignite – down from 50% in Q2.
Gen Z clients see AI developments as the top factor that will impact the stock market for the remainder of 2026 and unlike other client segments, Gen Z’s greatest investing concern in Q3 is an AI bubble.

View the findings Read the release

About the survey

The Charles Schwab Client Sentiment Survey is a quarterly study exploring the outlooks, expectations, plans, and points of view of clients at Charles Schwab. The Q3 2026 study included 1,123 retail clients and 1,100 active trader clients at Charles Schwab with retail assets of at least $2,000 and was fielded from June 16 through June 23, 2026. Active traders are defined as clients who actively trade equities or trade options, futures, or forex. An additional oversample of 457 Gen Z clients was collected for Gen Z-specific reporting.

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