Wall Street Today | March Will Bring Bear-Market Risks for US Stocks, Morgan Stanley Says

"Given our view that the earnings recession is far from over, we think March is a high risk month for the next leg lower in stocks," strategists led by Michael Wilson, ranked No. 1 in last year's Institutional Investor survey after correctly predicting the selloff in stocks, wrote in a note Monday.

A market favorite in 2022, the value trade is starting to lose its sheen. The next move for investors in the following month or two might be to go "outright underweight value versus growth," the team led by Mislav Matejka wrote in a note.

"Our core view is that in the second half, market will be moving back to the recession trade, but even if the opposite scenario gains traction, value might not be the best place to be," he wrote on Monday.

US pending home sales rose by the most since June 2020, potentially a temporary reprieve as lower mortgage rates in the month helped prop up demand. The National Association of Realtors' index of contract signings to purchase previously owned homes increased 8.1% in January from a month earlier to 82.5, according to data released Monday.