US Stocks: Bull market has room to grow (ext)

NEW YORK (CNNMoney) -- Despite this week's drubbing, the bull market still has room to grow, some analysts think.

Stocks have almost doubled from their March 2009 lows, prompting some experts to speculate about whether we're in for a crash landing.

But analysts say it's not time to panic just yet. The money that flowed out of the markets over the past three years is just starting to make its way back in.

"Looking at the bigger picture, there is a lot of room for this rally to continue, and any pullbacks will be small and contained," said Ryan Detrick, senior technical strategist at Schaeffer's Investment Research.

It's not all champagne and roses. Some say this bull run is largely due to the Federal Reserve's easy monetary policy, and once the central bank decides to unwind its support, the market will unravel.

"As long as the Fed keeps printing money, stocks will go higher on that momentum," said Joseph Saluzzi, co-head of equity trading at Themis Trading. "But there is going to be a point when the momentum will break. We don't know when it will happen, but it will be ugly."

On Thursday, stocks rebounded from afternoon lows and finished with small losses as oil prices retreated from two-year highs above $100 a barrel. The Dow Jones industrial average (INDU) finished 37 points lower, or 0.3%, and the S&P 500 (SPX) slipped 1 point, or 0.1%.

The recent spike in crude prices above $100 a barrel has investors "on the defensive," said Scott Marcoullier, chief technical market strategist at Wells Fargo Advisors. The market's weakness follows two days of steep losses.

Meanwhile, the Nasdaq (COMP) managed to gain 15 points, or 0.6%, thanks in part to a 9% jump in shares of Priceline.com (PCLN).

The Census Department's report on durable goods orders matched expectations. The government reported that orders rose 2.7% in January, up from a revised 2.5% in December.

The Commerce Department reported that new home sales declined more-than-expected in January to an annual rate of 284,000.

The dollar was lower against the euro and the Japanese yen, but gained slightly against the British pound.