Regional banks follow bigger rivals higher in earnings-season rally

PacWest Bancorp

18/07/2023 16:12

** Shares in regional banks were soaring on Tuesday with the KBW
Regional Banking index  .KRX  up 2.8% as bigger banks such as
Bank of America  BAC.N  and Morgan Stanley  MS.N  set the tone
with bullish results
    ** KRX touched its highest level since March 27 and was on
track for biggest one-day pct gain since early June. KRX, last
down ~17% YTD, tumbled in early March when the collapse of
several banks sparked a crisis in the industry  
    ** The S&P 500 bank index  .SPXBK  last up 1.9% while the
S&P 1500 regional bank index  .SPCOMBNKS  rallying 2.7%
    ** In the SPCOMBNKS, the biggest gainers were PacWest
Bancorp  PACW.O , up 8.7% followed by FB Financial  FBK.N  6.1% 
    ** In the SPXBK, regional bank Zions Bancorp  ZION.O  - due
to report its results late on Wednesday - was one of the biggest
gainers, up 3.9% 
    ** BAC shares were up 4.4% after it beat Wall Street Q2
profit estimates as earnings from loan payments increased and
investment banking, trading fared better than expected. It also
forecast NII growth for the full year, though at a slower pace
than in the second quarter 
    ** MS shares up 6.1%, its profit slipped 14% with deal slump
persisting, while stocks, bonds trading weakened. While CFO said
doesn't expect NII to expand, says investment banking backlog
building, resumption of positive monthly flows into equities,
underwriting trends positive

 (Reporting By Sinéad Carew)
 ((sinead.carew@thomsonreuters.com; +13322191897;))