Tuesday's Financial Winners & Losers

Updated from 12:13 p.m. EDT

Financial stocks bounded above the climbing broad indices Tuesday, cheered by Monday's momentum and a profusion of positive earnings releases.

Investment firm MCG Capital (MCGC Quote), of Arlington, Va., leapt 7.1% to $14.47 after second-quarter earnings rocketed 46.5% to 63 cents a share, or $38 million, from a year ago. In the same quarter, Safeco (SAF Quote), a Seattle-based insurer, upped its per-share earnings by 7 cents to $1.75 year over year, even as overall income edged down to $186.4 million. Analysts polled by Thomson Financial had sought $1.53 a share. Safeco stock added 2% to $58.47.

Commodities exchange Nymex (NMX Quote) traded actively on sharply higher income of $56.4 million, or 60 cents a share (excluding a one-time charge related to its investment in Optionable), compared with 44 cents a share last year. Insurer Navigators Group (NAVG Quote) saw mushrooming second-quarter earnings of $1.44 a share, and credit-card issuer Advanta (ADVNB Quote) said continuing-operations income totaled 51 cents a share.

Nymex was up 25 cents at $124.50; Navigators and Advanta gained 5.6% and 2.7%, respectively.

Elsewhere, Morgan Stanley (MS Quote) announced it will launch an initial public offering for a minority interest in Morgan Stanley Capital International, its 96.6%-owned purveyor of global-equity indices.

Morgan Stanley shares fell 74 cents, or 1.2%, at $63.87.

The NYSE Financial Sector index fell 0.8% to 9032.54, and the KBW Bank Index fell 2% to 105.12.