Odeon Capital analyst Richard Bove on Monday downgraded Regions Financial Cop. RF to hold from buy on his outlook for the bank’s prospects headed into 2024. While the bank has been led by “good management” for a decade, the growth in the business “has been well-thought out” but “it appears that management’s reliance on margins above sales is now creating a problem,” Bove said. Regions Financial should no longer align its pricing to the markets, Bove said. The bank also faces weakness in some formerly stable markets such as residential and commercial real estate, he said. “Moreover, selected company markets tend to suffer more than the nation in periods of economic weakness — this leads to loan quality issues,” Bove said. “This is not the time to buy this stock.” Regions Financial stock is down 29.9% in 2023, compared to a 15% rise by the S&P 500 SPX.
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