Earnings season officially kicked off today with Alcoa’s $1.49/share loss versus last year’s $0.75/share profit in the same quarter. The market yawned at the news and share’s moved just 0.5% in aftermarket trading. We all know that earnings this quarter will be dismal. In fact, Thompson Reuters expects negative earnings growth in seven of 10 sectors it tracks.

This is my third iteration of an ongoing search for institutional buyers with a fundamental focus. They've been largely in cash for months now, and until they re-enter the markets, we're just not going higher.