Whether it's just a Santa Claus rally, a sigh of relief from falling inflation, or a sign that investors are not particularly concerned about a recession, the stock market indices are knocking on the door of record highs.

This is great for stock portfolios but makes it much more difficult to find solid bargains. For instance,  trades near its all-time high, and its price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio of 36 hasn't been seen since the tech bubble of 2021. It isn't alone.

With CDs and bonds offering 5% yields, some investors are sitting more on cash or trimming their stock holdings as the market becomes increasingly expensive. This could be a smart move. stock market pullbacks are tricky to time (or else we would all be rich, right?), but they will inevitably come.

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Source Fool.com