REUTERS: The U.S. bank sector has been pummeled this year but investors hunting for bargains there may need deep reserves of patience as banks are particularly sensitive to low interest rates, the uneven economic recovery and the muddy stimulus outlook.
And the bank index is up 12per cent from its intraday trough on Sept. 2 to a peak on Oct. 6 as yields for longer-dated U.S. treasuries have risen with stimulus hopes as banks profit from higher interest rates. But as of Thursday afternoon there was no deal although U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin were set to continue with talks.
Lamar Villere, co-portfolio manager, says these banks are small enough that he can more easily examine their risks than the exposures of more geographically diverse and larger banks like JPMorgan Chase & Co or Wells Fargo & Co .