Retail Investors Are Buying Up Nvidia and Other Single Stocks. Here’s What That Means. [Video]

Retail investors have been buying up Nvidia (NVDA) and favoring single stocks over exchange-traded funds lately. That could indicate optimism about the markets.

According to Vanda Research, which tracks investment flows from retail buyers and sellers, net retail purchases of Nvidia totaled more than $1.1 billion between Oct. 17 and Oct. 23. Retail investors had inflows totaling $885 million into single stocks versus $497 million into ETFs during that period, Vanda said.

“The recent uptick in single stock purchases suggests that confidence levels remain relatively optimistic,” wrote Vanda analysts in a Thursday note. “In a more cautious environment we would see purchases of ETFs increase as individuals generally like to stay invested but scale down risk levels by broadening exposure outside of concentrated single-name bets.”

Tesla (TSLA) was a not-so-close second to Nvidia, attracting more than $353 million of retail investors’ dollars between Oct. 17 and Oct. 23.

Tesla reported earnings that beat expectationsafter the ball on the 23rd, causing …