A rising market didn't instill confidence in March, as investors withdrew more from stock mutual funds than they deposited into them.

It marked a shift from January and February, when stock funds finally began to attract cash after an eight-month string of net withdrawals.

Industry consultant Strategic Insight said on Wednesday that investors withdrew a net $7.5 billion from U.S. stock funds in March. That more than offsets the total $4.5 billion in net deposits that stock funds attracted in January and February.

The March retreat from stock funds came despite a rally that lifted stocks more than 12 percent in the first quarter.

Bond mutual funds continued to attract cash last month, with net deposits of nearly $16 billion.

U.S. funds specializing in foreign stocks attracted a net $5.2 billion.