Altman Leads Hedge-Fund Managers Betting Rally Will Last

Jeff Altman and John Paulson, two of last year’s best-performing hedge-fund managers, are predicting that stocks will continue their rally in 2014 even as the bull market approaches its sixth year.

They’re among a number of top money managers betting markets are robust enough to weather a gradual reduction in the pace of the Federal Reserve’s asset purchases as the central bank signaled it will keep interest rates at their current low for the foreseeable future, according to interviews with more than half a dozen investors. Stock selection will become more important because the broader U.S. market won’t repeat last year’s 30 percent rally, and it will get easier to profit by betting against selected companies, they say.