Sector Update: Financial Stocks Slipping Friday Afternoon
Financial stocks were lower Friday afternoon, with the NYSE Financial Index decreasing 0.6% and the State Street Financial Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLF) falling 1.2%.The Philadelphia Housing Index was down 0.5%, and the State Street Real Estate Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLRE) was little changed.Bitcoin (BTC-USD) was increasing 1.5% to $72,873, and the yield for 10-year US Treasuries rose 2.6 basis points to nearly 4.32%.In economic news, US consumer inflation accelerated to its highest monthly reading in nearly four years in March as the Middle East conflict sent energy prices sharply higher. The consumer price index advanced 0.9% last month, its strongest pace of growth since June 2022, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Friday. The latest print met a Bloomberg-polled consensus view. Prices rose 0.3% in February. Annually, inflation grew to 3.3% from February's 2.4% rise, falling short of Wall Street's 3.4% projection.US consumer sentiment hit the lowest on record this month, reflecting heightened worries about higher prices and the overall economic fallout from the Middle East conflict, University of Michigan's preliminary survey showed Friday. The main sentiment index plunged about 11% to 47.6 in April from March. That's the lowest print on record, BMO Capital Markets said in a note. Wall Street expected a 51.5 print, according to Bloomberg's poll.In corporate news, Ares Management (ARES) is planning to launch a flagship US direct lending fund with a preliminary target size of roughly $20 billion, significantly smaller than its previous record-breaking investment vehicle of $33.6 billion, Bloomberg reported. Ares shares fell past 5%.Fair Isaac (FICO) shares dropped 13% after Barclays cut its price target on the stock to $1,950 from $2,400 while maintaining its overweight rating.Blackstone (BX) is mulling an initial public offering that could raise $2 billion for a firm that will acquire data centers, Bloomberg reported. Blackstone shares were down 2.3%.