Today’s bank earnings and market reaction a mixed bag–which is an improvement from Friday’s pessimism

Today’s bank earnings and market reaction a mixed bag–which is an improvement from Friday’s pessimism

More big bank earnings today–and, fortunately, they were a mixed bag. Which made them markedly better than Friday’s results. Bank of America’s (BAC) ‘s second-quarter earnings per share rose 12% to 46 cents, beating by 3 cents a share. Revenue climbed 7% to $22.8 billion against the Wall Street consensus of $21.915 billion. Shares of Bank of America closed up 0.5% today, July 18.

Today’s bank earnings and market reaction a mixed bag–which is an improvement from Friday’s pessimism

Lagging banking sector barrier to S&P 500 advance: where’s the leadership?

Banking stocks continued their recent drift. The Financial Select Sector SPDR (XLF) closed the day at $23.25. That’s below the sector’s May 25 close at $23.62. The sector, one of the best performing sectors in the market since the election, has been a key to moving the Standard & Poor’s 500 upward earlier in 2017. The KBW Banks Index had been up 32.2% from the election to the beginning of March, but is now ahead just 20%