Bank stocks outperformed the broader market Friday at the end of a particularly bloody week for the sector and the broader market.
Several names that had been big decliners all week on credit and market-related concerns actually posted gains, though traders said that Friday's recovery may not last.
"I think the volatility is here to stay for a while," said Anthony Conroy, managing director at Bank of New York Mellon Corp.'s BNY ConvergEx Group.
The American Banker index of the top 50 banks gained 0.57% Friday but shed 3.9% for the week. The index of 225 stocks rose 0.7% for the day but fell 3.29% for the week. The thrift index gained 3.66% for the day but fell 2.5% for the week.
The Dow Jones industrial average fell 1.69% for the day and 2.4% for the week. The Standard & Poor's 500 fell 1.43% for the day and 3.7% for the week.
The day's gainers included several companies that had warned of rising credit issues and other possible issues Friday and earlier in the week.
Wachovia Corp. rose nearly 1%, though the $754 billion-asset Charlotte company had warned Friday morning that it would write down $1.1 billion of exposure to the collateralized debt obligation market for October alone.
Washington Mutual Inc. rose nearly 6%. The $312 billion-asset Seattle thrift company's shares had taken a severe pummeling following a warning Wednesday about rising loan losses and allegations by New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo that the company pressured appraisers to inflate mortgage valuations.
Citigroup Inc. rose nearly 1% after falling earlier in the week. The $2.4 trillion-asset New York company had said it expects to write down up to $11 billion of CDOs this quarter.
Capital One Financial Corp. gained 2.57 Friday after rising 5.3% Thursday. The McLean, Va., company also had warned of rising credit costs earlier in the week.
National City Corp. gained 1.6%. Peter E. Raskind, its chief executives, told analysts that company officials expect its dividend "to remain intact" for now.
Popular Inc. gained more than 7%. The San Juan, Puerto Rico, company announced another restructuring. It said it is cutting 513 positions, or more than 60% of the work force at its online mortgage unit, E-Loan. The restructuring will create a $24.2 million fourth-quarter charge.
BankAtlantic Bancorp Inc. continued to recover from a recent 40% slide after reporting a third-quarter loss related to real estate problems. Shares in the Fort Lauderdale, Fla., company rose nearly 10% Friday after increasing 11% Thursday and nearly 10% Wednesday.
Omega Financial Corp. rose 16.55% Friday. The State College, Pa., company announced it was selling itself by F.N.B. Financial Corp. of Hermitage. F.N.B. shares rose less than 1% on the news. After the purchase, F.N.B. would have $8 billion of assets and become the fifth-largest bank holding company based in Pennsylvania. The deal is expected to close early in the second quarter.
The decliners included Atlantic BancGroup Inc., which fell more than 18%. The Jacksonville Beach, Fla., parent of Oceanside Bank said its third-quarter net income fell 62.5% from a year earlier, to $201,000.
