Waiting for the ‘tapernado’ to hit

The stock market isn't adjusting for the potential drawdown of Federal Reserve asset purchases in September, Belus Capital Advisors CEO Brian Sozzi said Wednesday.

"I'm waiting for the 'tapernado' to hit," he said. "What the market is doing right now, it is telling you that it's not adjusting to the taper. And even if it does adjust, as I think it will happen as you approach the Fed meeting, what's going to happen after?

"So, even if we do stabilize, right now we're pricing in taper. After that, we're starting to price in potential complete malaise as we get into 2014 with a new Fed chairman."

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At issue was whether the Federal Reserve would begin to draw down its $85 billion per month of asset purchases.

On CNBC's "Fast Money," OptionMonster's Pete Najarian said that the market needed a clear signal.

"They need to hear that the economy looks better than I think a lot of us really think that it is," he said.

The options saw a "significant pullback" from last week, while the CBOE Volatility Index climbed more than 4 points in the same time period, Najarian added.

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"The Fed is the complete focus that everybody's got," he said.

Stephen Weiss of Short Hills Capital said that he wasn't expecting disaster in the market.

"Don't forget, we started this decline when the market was up more than 20 percent at all-time highs," he said. "Markets don't do that every year, so it was only natural for it to come down."

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Weiss said that he had taken off positions over the past few weeks.

"I'm sitting in more cash than I've sat in a long time," he said. "I'm looking for opportunities. I'm not looking for a major decline."

By CNBC's Bruno J. Navarro. Follow him on Twitter @Bruno_J_Navarro.

Trader disclosure: On Aug. 21, 2013, the following stocks and commodities mentioned or intended to be mentioned on CNBC's "Fast Money" were owned by the "Fast Money" traders: Pete Najarian is long AAPL; Pete Najarian is long C; Pete Najarian is long BBRY; Pete Najarian is long SBUX; Pete Najarian is long FB; Pete Najarian is long GE; Pete Najarian is long PFE; Pete Najarian is long MRK; Pete Najarian is long LLY; Pete Najarian is long BMY; Pete Najarian is long MNKD; Pete Najarian is long SUNE; Pete Najarian is long KWK; Jon Najarian is long AAPL; Jon Najarian is long EBAY; Jon Najarian is long GRPN; Jon Najarian is long MSFT; Jon Najarian is long QCOM; Jon Najarian is long MSG; Jon Najarian is long TOL; Jon Najarian is long JCP; Jon Najarian is long HLF; Jon Najarian is long CREE; Steve Milunovich is long AAPL; Steve Milunovich is long UBS.