Red-hot earnings have traders the most bullish on banks in years — and that's huge for the stock market

pulse

October 18, 2017 11:06 AM

Traders are positioned the most bullish in years on bank stocks after a handful of the biggest firms reported better-than-expected earnings.

Wall Street really knocked it out of the park this quarter, and traders have taken notice.

In the wake of better-than-expected results for JPMorgan, Goldman Sachs, Bank of America, Citigroup and Morgan Stanley, they're positioning for further upside in the sector — a development that signals merrier times ahead for an equity bull market well into its ninth year.

Short interest — a measure of bets that share prices will drop — on an exchange-traded fund tracking financial stocks in the S&P 500 is sitting near the lowest level in at least three years, relative to outstanding shares available to loan, IHS Markit

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