Argus research analyst Jim Kelleher recently discussed the firm’s outlook for the financial sector in Argus’ monthly research conference call. According to Kelleher, the firm is bullish on financial stocks headed into 2017.

“We are currently Overweight on the Financials sector as we expect valuation improvement on better 2017 trends,” Kelleher explains.

He points out that the financial sector has lagged the overall market by more than 4 percent in 2016. Kelleher blames a disappointing rate hike schedule on the lackluster performance. In addition, the surprise Brexit vote sent shockwaves through the financial sector and has injected uncertainty into the global banking world.

However, with a majority of economists now anticipating another rate hike in December, Kelleher believes financials are well-positioned headed into 2017. He notes healthy consumer and commercial loan growth, solid credit quality, and depressed stock valuations as reasons for optimism in the space. In addition, Kelleher believes that banks have mostly adjusted to the Dodd-Frank regulatory burden and the costs associated with it. Despite the financial burden regulations have placed on the banks, their capital reserve safety nets now make them much safer investments.

Kelleher also believes…

Click here to continue reading

Want to learn more about how to profit off the stock market? Or maybe you just want to be able to look sophisticated in front of your coworkers when they ask you what you are reading on your Kindle, and you’d prefer to tell them “Oh, I’m just reading a book about stock market analysis,” rather than the usual “Oh, I’m just looking at pics of my ex-girlfriend on Facebook.” For these reasons and more, check out my book, Beating Wall Street with Common Sense. I don’t have a degree in finance; I have a degree in neuroscience. You don’t have to predict what stocks will do if you can predict what traders will do and be one step ahead of them. I made a 400% return in the stock market over five years using only basic principles of psychology and common sense. Beating Wall Street with Common Sense is now available on Amazon, and tradingcommonsense.com is always available on your local internet!