Why Bank of America Corp (BAC) Took Off Like a Rocket This Week: JPMorgan Chase & Co. (JPM), Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. (GS)

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It’s been a big week not just for Wall Street — what with the Dow Jones Industrial Average hitting a new all-time high — but for Bank of America Corp (NYSE:BAC), too, which is so far set to finish the trading week up a whopping 6.65%.

Thank general energy, enthusiasm, and some not-so-stressful Federal Reserve tests.

The tale of the tickers
But before we get to the hows and whys of B of A’s big week, let’s take a quick look at where its peers and the market overall are shaking out for the week:

Bank of America Corp (NYSE:BAC)Up by a massive 8.71%, Citigroup Inc. (NYSE:C) has had an even better week than B of A.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE:JPM) looks set to finish up just a little more than two percentage points, at 2.29%.

Wells Fargo & Co (NYSE:WFC) is up almost three points, currently at 2.78%.

All three major indices are in the green, as well:

The S&P 500 is up 2.23%.

The Dow is up 2.32%.

And the Nasdaq is up 2.48%.

Fingers more than crossed for buybacks and dividends
We have two separate happenings playing into B of A’s big performance this week. First, we’re in a bull moment right now overall. The Dow hit a new all-time high this week. Investor confidence is obviously strong, and when investors see other investors jumping into the market, they want to follow suit.

As indices drive higher, more investors plunk their money down. And as more investors plunk their money down, indices are driven higher, which draw more investors in. Energy — whether positive or negative — attracts like energy.

The second big happening relates to Federal Reserve stress test results. Bank investors have been on collective pins and needles waiting to see how their banks will perform, and whether or not said banks will engage in a fresh round of share buybacks or increased dividends.

Yesterday, the Fed released part one of its stress test results: measuring how well banks might perform under a severe financial and economic downturn, similar to that experienced in 2008. How did B of A do?



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