The former chief equity strategist at BlackRock said last year saw more muted returns whereas 2014 will see returns are positive but it will be a “bumpy” ride along the way.
Speaking in a recent webcast, Doll blamed the weather for the weak quarter in economic terms.
He said of a reported 10% selloff in equity markets: “The truth is no one really knows. January was a 6 [per cent decline] and more than half the stocks in the S&P500 were down more than 10%, so can we expect another one or two [per cent] this year? Yes, and that’s normal.
“The first quarter will be weak. You have a combination of precipitation, with temperature with population. There is no question that the weather is dampening results and I think we will see at least another 30 days of difficult US economic readings which will clearly affect the first quarter.
"I think when the year is said and done the we will see a lift back to something normal – if temperatures ever normalise.”
He said the weather was likely “two-thirds if not 100%” responsible for the declines but admitted it was impossible to tell until things began to normalise, whcih could be as late as the winter or early spring.
In terms of underlying fundamentals, Doll said facing the end of Q4 reporting season, revenues had “taken a nice uptick” following “about five quarters in a row where revenues went nowhere”.
He said they were now picking up with Q4 earnings up almost 10%, which he said indicated the beginning of better fundamentals for US equity investors.
