Yahoo Finance Why Banking Stocks within XLF Excelled Last Week
Financials Roundup: Bulls Gain Upper Hand Last Week
Banks rallied as sentiment turned positive
The broad-based SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY) gained 2.7% last week. Since the beginning of the year, global stock markets have been on a roller-coaster ride due to slowing economic growth and plunging oil prices. The financial sector has historically been a leading indicator of drops in the Market and has been affected the most by this global sell-off. However, the losses incurred since the beginning of the year have been offset by gains in the past two weeks.
The gainers and losers within XLF
The Financial Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLF), the most widely traded financial ETF, closed at $22.28 on March 4, rising 4.5% during the week. Among other financial ETFs, the Vanguard Financials ETF (VFH) and iShares U.S. Financials ETF (IYF) generated returns of 4.4% and 4.3%, respectively, during the week.
While all subgroups within the financial sector generated positive returns last week, banks rose the most. Banking stocks within the Financial Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLF) gained 6.3%. Banking stocks constitute ~48% of XLF. Regional banks led the gains within the subgroup and returned 7.1% last week.
All 21 banking stocks within XLF posted positive returns during the week, led by Zions Bancorporation (ZION), Comerica (CMA), and Fifth Third Bancorp (FITB). These stocks rose 11.8%, 9.4%, and 9.3%, respectively. Meanwhile, Capital One Financial (COF), BB&T, and M&T Bank underperformed among the banks within XLF’s portfolio. These stocks returned 3.6%, 3.6%, and 3.8% respectively, during the same period.
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