Rising interest rates historically benefit regional banks, but that has not been the case this year. Higher interest rates would help widen the difference between what banks charge on loans and pay on deposits, which would boost earnings for the financial sector. Regional banks are among the stocks most positively correlated to rising interest rates because higher rates improve net interest margins.
“The all-stock deal, announced by the companies Thursday and valued at about $66 billion, will create a bank that serves more than 10 million U.S. households. A new name for the bank will be chosen before the deal’s expected closing in the fourth quarter of this year,” reports USA Today.
IAT holds 59 stocks and the ETF’s largest holding is US Bancorp (NYSE: USB) at a weight of 14.56%.
For more information on the banking sector, visit our financial category.
