For Investment Bankers, a Shifting M&A Landscape Demands Adaptability (and Creativity)
The business model at investment banking firms serving the regional and community bank sector over the past few decades has worked very well, helped by an extraordinary level of deal activity,…
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Counter-Trend M&A Can Often Prove The Wisest Course In The Long Run
M&A waves typically reflect a “follow-the-herd” mentality. More often than not, periods of heightened bank sector M&A activity seem to be driven by a few common themes in each cycle. But…
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Surprising Trends Around Recent Bank M&A
Like the Summer Heat, M&A Activity Has Spiked, And In Many Ways Seems Fairly Conventional. A number of high-profile M&A transactions — like M&T / People’s United; Webster / Sterling;…
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An Encouraging Set-Up Heading Into Quarter-End, But What Does That Mean For Bank Stocks?
There are several reasons for optimism. The fundamental set-up heading into 1Q bank earnings season is generally pretty encouraging, for a number of reasons. First, we think banks will report…
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Are Tech/Fintech-Focused Investors Bidding Up “Tech-Forward” Bank Stocks?
On the one hand, pure technology and fintech-oriented stocks have been weak so far year-to-date… So far this year, and especially over the past month or so, it’s been interesting to…
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More Banks Now Likely Ensnared in the Russell Web
A new development and heightened interest leads us back to the Russell topic this week. There were plans to focus on a new topic this week after highlighting what I’ll call…
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The Intersection of FinTech and Community Banking
A webinar hosted by Travillian yielded quite a few interesting takeaways. Last week, The Travillian Group hosted a webinar that I was fortunate to co-moderate along with Brian Love from Travillian. The topic…
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The 2021 Russell Trade: A Challenge for Some, Opportunity for Others, and a Conundrum for Investors
Russell reconstitution this year could be more impactful, for a wider swath of companies, than in years past. The reconstitution of the Russell indexes takes place annually, at the midpoint…
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Is a Massive M&A Wave on the Way?
Pre-COVID, the bank sector was ripe for consolidation. I remember thinking heading into this year that it was likely to be an active one for M&A, for a variety of…
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Uncovering the Connection between Liquidity and Valuation
Stock liquidity is a frequent topic of discussion, particularly amongst smaller, newly public institutions that are navigating the markets and interacting with institutional investors for the first time. Earlier this year,…
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Would Increased Corporate Tax Rates Hit Banks Where It Hurts?
While no longer inevitable or even likely, higher corporate tax rates are still possible. With the election and its potential ramifications still in focus and in flux, we’re going to…
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Fastest Three Minutes in Banking: Post-Election Day Musings
While the country sorts through the implications of the historic vote earlier this week, and with the caveat that things can still change and could remain in dispute for quite…
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