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Profile: Comerica Inc.
If the FOMC raises the target rate for fed funds further, then banks like CMA are likely to come under renewed selling pressure.
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Jun 28, 20237 min read


Update: Mortgage Lenders, TBA Contango & MSRs
We look for lower prices for legacy MBS and MSRs as new allocations are used up and P&Ls sink deeper into the red...
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Jun 26, 20238 min read


Update: GS, MS, SCHW, RJF & SF
If you agree with our view that the short-selling of the stock was mistaken, then the discount for SCHW is unwarranted.
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Jun 21, 20235 min read


Powell Ought to Pivot to Bond Sales
If the FOMC raises fed funds further, bank failures and perhaps even a market access crisis for the Treasury are next.
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Jun 19, 20238 min read


Update: Banks & Fintechs
With inflation fears moderating, look for Buy Side managers to buy bank stocks – even if earnings remain constrained...
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Jun 14, 20235 min read


Bank Deposits vs US Treasury Bills
Remember, for every $1 in debt redeemed on the books of the Fed, a bank deposit disappears.
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Jun 12, 20235 min read


Calculate the WAC of Bank of America
If you believe that the Fed is going to keep interest rates at or above current levels through to 2024, then we have a problem....
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May 29, 20237 min read


Interest Rates, MSRs, Mortgage Putbacks & FICO Scores
Persistent talk about a 5.5% 30-year mortgage rate later this year is badly wrong as TBAs flip from 5.5% to 6% coupons for delivery in June
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May 25, 20238 min read


PacWest Bancorp & Fed Hawks
To survive long-term, both WAL and PACW need to get that beta back down below 2 and closer to 1, but the hawks on the FOMC may not cooperate
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May 23, 20237 min read


Mortgage Rates Headed for 7% as Residential Defaults Slowly Rise
We think that further Fed tightening, plus sales of MBS from FDIC and banks generally, may force mortgage rates higher into the 7% range
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May 21, 20232 min read


Fed Asymmetry Threatens Credit Crisis
The price volatility injected into markets by the Fed is a primary reason why the FDIC cannot easily find buyers for smaller banks.
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May 15, 20236 min read


Measuring Powell's Bank Rate Shock
Q: What happens to net-interest margin for banks when the rate of change in funding costs doubles or more in a single quarter?
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May 7, 20236 min read


Banks, Interest Rates & Fed Chairs
Imagine how President Joe Biden will react if Chair Powell needs to announce formal limits on access to US bank deposits.
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May 4, 20234 min read


The False Narrative on First Republic Bank
Until Chairman Powell comes clean with the Congress and the American people, more banks will inevitably fail.
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May 1, 20236 min read


Q1 2023 Bank Earnings: Lower for Longer | JPM USB C WFC BAC
Given that the US Treasury is paying 4% for 90-day T-bills, you can see how far banks have to go to become competitive on rates
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Apr 12, 20238 min read


Powell's Duration Trap, Banks and the US Treasury
The Fed by definition cannot make a profit and is always an expense to the Treasury, thus operating losses are a expense to the taxpayer
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Apr 9, 202312 min read


Update: Charles Schwab (SCHW); Sagent Presentation
Most major banks grew larger during quantitative easing. Now many of these banks will shrink in terms of assets and also earnings in Q1 2023
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Apr 3, 20236 min read


QT, Interest Rates & Bank Solvency
At the Fed, because “confidence” is considered a factor in “policy,” it is OK to fib and obfuscate about the true cost of monetary policy.
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Mar 30, 20236 min read


Update: New York Community Bank
We liked the NYCB + Flagstar story prior to the transaction with the FDIC for the assets and deposits of Signature Bank.
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Mar 26, 202310 min read


FOMC Doubles Down on Market Risk
Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen and Fed Chairman Jerome Powell are another bank failure or two away from returning to the private sector.
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Mar 23, 20236 min read
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