Financial stocks and exchange traded funds have been the worst performing sector in the S&P 500 over the past quarter, and some technical analysts argue that the weakness will extend.
Over the past three months, the Financial Select Sector SPDR (NYSEArca: XLF) is up 3.8%, Vanguard Financials ETF (NYSEArca: VFH) rose 3.7% and he iShares U.S. Financials ETF (NYSEArca: IYF) gained 3.5%. The S&P 500 Financials Index is 1.8% since the start of April.
In comparison, the S&P 500 index 4.7% higher quarter-to-date.
“Financials continue to underperform the market month after month after month,” Sterne Agee, chief market technician at Carter Worth, said in a note, CNBC reports. “And if one excludes certain very strong, large-cap, marquee names that are buttressing the sector (such as Wells Fargo, Berkshire Hathaway, American Express) things would be even worse. …Bottom line: We retain the view that Financials are not a good place to be.”
The financial services industry is fairly valued, writes Stephen Ellis, director of Morningstar‘s financial services team. Specifically, the industry trades at a price-to-fair value ratio of 1.01, which suggests that all the bargain hunters have already taken their picks.
Additionally, the surprisingly poor results on the 2014 Comprehensive Capital Analysis and Review (CCAR) for several banks has been weighing on the sector. [Financial Services ETFs Deal With Bad BofA Dividend News]