BankAtlantic: Financial Winners & Losers
NEW YORK (
) -- Financial stocks were mixed for the most part, yet at least one bank stock was getting a boost from merger speculation.
The
Financial Select Sector SPDR
(XLF) - Get Report
was trading roughly flat, up just 0.5% to $15.56.
BankAltantic Bancorp
(BBX) - Get Report
shares were up roughly 13% after the Fort Lauderdale-based regional bank responded late Wednesday to speculation that it was up for sale by saying even though its intention is to remain independent, it is in shareholders best interest to "be flexible and open to opportunities."
"Given the challenges of the current economic environment, we recognize the need to be nimble, prepared and comprehensive in the options we consider," BankAtlantic's Chairman and CEO Alan Levan said in a statement. "Management continues to aggressively focus on reducing expenses, returning to profitability, evaluating available alternatives to reduce our level of nonperforming assets, and continuing to focus on capital in order to provide BankAtlantic with strategic flexibility."
Elsewhere
Bank of America
(BAC) - Get Report
shares rose 2.7% to $12.63. The Charlotte-based bank was reportedly in discussions to settle with several investors requests for
.
BofA shares were still rising even though Keefe Bruyette & Woods
on Thursday along with
BB&T
(BBT) - Get Report
and
Comerica
(CMA) - Get Report
.
BB&T shares were also rising 0.9% to $26.40. Comerica shares were rising 0.8% to $40.58.
Other financials that were gaining included shares of
Marshall & Ilsley
( MI),
New York Community Bancorp
( NYB) and
Valley National
(VLY) - Get Report
.
Several large-cap bank stocks were in the red on Thursday.
Citigroup
(C) - Get Report
shares after falling most of the morning, were inching back above the water line. At last check, the stock was rising 0.3% to $4.60.
Shares of
Discover Financial Services
(DFS) - Get Report
were most recently falling 2% to $18.74. The
card payments network reported fiscal fourth quarter profit
of $349.6 million, or 64 cents a share, higher than Wall Street was expecting aided by credit improvement. However, Discover's revenue fell short of expectations.
-- Written by Laurie Kulikowski in New York.
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Laurie Kulikowski
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Disclosure: TheStreet's editorial policy prohibits staff editors, reporters and analysts from holding positions in any individual stocks.