Best-Performing Bank Stocks of 2013
December 23, 2013 12:00 AM
The KBW Bank Index continued its upward trajectory in 2013, again outperforming the S&P 500 (all returns are through Dec. 12). This year, many of the top performing bank stocks among those with $20 billion or more in assets were large community banks rather than the biggest institutions.
Total return, year through Dec. 12: 30.2%
Data: Sandler O'Neill and SNL Financial
SVB Financial (SIVB)
Total return: 79.6%
SVB, which lends and invests in Silicon Valley companies, earned $157 million in the first nine months of 2013,
East West Bancorp (EWBC)
Total return: 59.7%
In September, East West in Los Angeles
FirstMerit (FMER)
Total return: 56.2%
FirstMerit executives were under fire a year ago for
City National (CYN)
Total return: 55.8%
City National in Los Angeles took advantage of its strong stock price by announcing a
First Republic (FRC)
Total return: 55.6%
Another bank that focuses on wealth management, First Republic posted strong earnings throughout the year. Lending also increased, and the Los Angeles company
KeyCorp (KEY)
Total return: 55.3%
KeyCorp is one of the few large to make the list. The Cleveland company posted consistent earnings and brought in capital by
Comerica (CMA)
Total return: 50%
Comerica in Dallas benefits from a large Texas footprint. It also focused on cost-cutting earlier in the year and reported strong loan growth in the third quarter. Despite a its stock's impressive performance, the company has said it feels
