On a recent trip through Madrid, Spain we had the opportunity to speak to most of the publicly traded Spanish banks, as well as the Bank of Spain. The Hamilton Capital Global Bank ETF (HBG) which is outperforming its benchmark by 14.4%, has ~3% exposure to Spanish banks, while the Hamilton Capital Global Financials Yield ETF (HFY), which is outperforming its benchmark by over 6%, has…
Commentary: HFG
HBG’s U.S. Bank Portfolio Posts 39% EPS Growth Y/Y
Hamilton Capital Global Bank ETF (HBG) continues to enjoy material outperformance with comparatively low drawdowns. Since inception, it has reported a 19% annualized return and is 14.4% ahead of the global bank index (in CAD, as of April 30, 2018). One of the main contributors to the strong performance of HBG is the earnings growth of the U.S. bank portfolio. In Q1-18, this portfolio reported yet another…
U.S. Banks: Mega-Caps’ Q4 Results in 4 Charts
With reporting season now over, we thought we would offer some key takeaways for the four U.S. mega-cap banks (JPM, C, BAC, WFC). Given that these four firms account for over 33% of the U.S. financials index (S5FINL Index), they have a significant/disproportionate impact on the overall sector’s results and are therefore worth following. In this note, we show operating earnings trends for each bank. As…
HBG’s U.S. Banks Portfolio Posts 19% EPS Growth Y/Y
February 26, 2018 by Hamilton Capital Hamilton Capital Global Bank ETF (HBG), continues to enjoy material outperformance with comparatively low drawdowns. Since inception, it has reported a 21% annualized return and is 10% ahead of the global banks index (in CAD). HBG also had comparatively low drawdowns during the two large macro corrections and outperformed in 19 of the 20 worst days (see exhibit below). One…
U.S. Banks: Wells Fargo and “Invisible” Bank Taxes
We have written several times on WFC’s inability to grow EPS and its ongoing regulatory problems. That said, even we were surprised that on Janet Yellen’s last day as Chair of the Federal Reserve (“Fed”), the central bank filed a consent order against Wells Fargo (“WFC”) requiring the bank take a number of extraordinary steps to improve corporate governance. While WFC does so, the Fed has…
U.S. Banks: High/Low Growth Areas in One Map (i.e., “Follow the Sun”)
In banking, as in most businesses, geography matters. Population growth supports GDP growth, which in turn drives revenue growth. In general, U.S. bank investors divide the U.S. into six distinct regions: the Northeast, Mid-Atlantic, Midwest, Southeast, Southwest, and West (see chart at the end of this comment). Within these regions, there are 53 metropolitan statistical areas (MSAs) with a population greater than 1 million and nearly…
U.S. Bank Mergers in Two Charts
In the Hamilton Capital U.S. Mid-Cap Financials ETF (USD) (TSX: HFMU.U) and the Hamilton Capital Global Bank ETF (TSX: HBG) our exposure to the U.S. mid-cap banking sector is ~65% and ~48%, respectively (owing to the sector’s low dividend yields, Hamilton Capital Global Financials Yield ETF has just 10% exposure to U.S. banks).
Notes from the Field: “Follow the Sun” / Catching up with U.S. Banks in Phoenix
One of our themes for the U.S. banks is to “follow the sun”, which refers to our emphasis on banks domiciled in the higher population growth states/metropolitan statistical area[1] (“MSAs”). Every single one of the 15 faster growing large MSAs (i.e., those with populations in excess of 1.5 million people) are located in the (sunny) Southeast, Southwest, and West.
HBG’s U.S. Bank Portfolio Posts 16% EPS Growth Y/Y
November 16, 2017 by Hamilton Capital In the Hamilton Capital Global Bank ETF (Ticker: HBG), the U.S. bank portfolio reported another very strong quarter, posting portfolio-weighted earnings growth of ~16% Y/Y, its fifth consecutive quarter of double-digit Y/Y growth. HBG is up 10.3% YTD (through October 31st), making it 13% ahead of the KBW Global Bank Index (CAD). HBG continues to generate very consistent performance, with comparatively…
HBG: U.S. Bank Portfolio Posts EPS Growth 20% Y/Y
September 5, 2017 In the Hamilton Capital Global Bank ETF (HBG, HBG.U; TSX), the U.S. mid-cap bank portfolio reported another very strong quarter, posting portfolio weighted year-over-year earnings growth of ~20% – its fifth consecutive quarter of double-digit growth. As we have noted in the past, with over 150 mid-cap banks (i.e., those with market caps between $0.5 bln and $20 bln), there is greater opportunity…
Notes from the Field: Everything’s Peachy in Atlanta
A recent trip to Atlanta gave us a chance to meet with executives from several publicly traded banks headquartered in Georgia, as well as some of their commercial customers and a local land broker. Seven months after the election of an administration with ambitions of pro-growth policies and reforms that renewed investor interest in U.S. bank stocks, the trip presented a good opportunity to check in…
Notes from the Field: At Home with the Challengers of U.K. Banking
During a recent trip to London, we had the opportunity to sit down with executives from six UK-based banks, including teams from two High Street banks and four from what are commonly referred to as “Challenger banks”. In this note, we review our stance on U.K. banks, provide a brief breakdown of the market, and discuss our key takeaways from the trip.