Bank of America (NYSE: BAC) shares have been caught in a vicious downdraft this year with little relief in sight.
The banking giant’s stock has been an anchor around the neck of exchange traded funds tracking the financial sector that weight stocks by market capitalization.
Now, a technical analyst is warning that Financial Select Sector SPDR Fund (NYSEArca: XLF) recently suffered a so-called death cross. This bearish signal is triggered when the 50-day exponential moving average crosses below the 200-day.
“These signals are not reliable in sideways ranges but in downtrends they are have better success,” said Tarquin Coe at Investors Intelligence in a newsletter Wednesday.
“The XLF is in a well-defined downtrend channel off its February high. The recent pause is likely a bearish consolidation rather than a bottom,” he wrote. “The XLF fund also exhibits a strong relative downtrend against the market.”