19 of 21 financial stocks post earnings beats as banks continue to win big – Earnings Scorecard

In this week’s earnings recap, 21 companies belonging to the S&P 500 financial sector (NYSEARCA:XLF) reported their business performance for the quarter ended September.

The financial sector has been in focus, especially after the Federal Reserve delivered a supersized rate cut. The sector has also seen a pickup in investment activity in the third quarter. In the third quarter, XLF had advanced 10%, exceeding SPY’s rise of 5.2%. QTD XLF has risen 5.6%, as compared to, above SPY’s rise of 2.4%.

Earnings recap:

The financial sector is predicted to report a year-over-year earnings decline of -0.4% for the third quarter, FactSet said in its analysis, with reports from bank likely to be a mixed bag.

This week saw 21 financial stocks belonging to the S&P 500 index reported results, of which 19 companies reported an earnings beat, while one company reported a miss, and one posted in-line EPS.

On the revenue side, 15 companies exceeded revenue estimates, one came in-line, while five companies trailed estimates.

Below are the latest quarterly reports from five companies, which reported their results:

Citigroup (C) Q3 earnings topped the Wall Street estimates, helped by lower expenses, and the company expects to reach its full-year revenue and expense targets.

Goldman Sachs (GS) Q3 earnings beat the analysts’ consensus by a wide margin as net interest income increased.

While Bank of America’s (BAC) Q3 earnings declined from both the previous and year-ago quarters, they topped the Wall Street consensus.

Morgan Stanley’s (MS) Q3 earnings soared past the consensus estimate as markets and underwriting businesses drove a surge in investment banking revenue.

Blackstone (BX) turned in better-than-expected Q3 earnings on Thursday as investment activity picked up, and fund appreciation was its strongest in three years.

At the industry level, 14 banks, two capital markets, three consumer finance, and two insurance companies reported earnings this week.

QTD, 25 out of 49 companies which have reported earnings so far are part of the financial sector.

Notable financial firms reporting results next week include, S&P Global (SPGI), Capital One Financial (COF), KKR & Co. (KKR), and Fiserv (FI), among others.