Sector Update: Financial Stocks Decline Late Afternoon

03:54 PM EDT, 10/14/2026 (MT Newswires) -- Financial stocks were lower in late Wednesday afternoon trading, with the NYSE Financial Index falling 1% and the State Street Financial Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLF) shedding 0.8%. The Philadelphia Housing Index dropped 1.6%, and the State Street Real Estate Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLRE) was down 0.8%. Bitcoin (BTC-USD) was declining 1.6% to $81,749, and the yield for 10-year US Treasuries decreased 3 basis points to 5.19%. In economic news, the consumer price index jumped 0.6% in September, as expected in a Bloomberg-compiled poll, from 0.4% in August, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Core CPI climbed 0.3%, above the 0.2% consensus but in line with August. Overall and core CPI year-over-year accelerated to 3.7% and 2.6%, respectively, from 3.4% and 2.4%, and beat market expectations. The CME FedWatch tool showed that the probability of the Federal Reserve lifting its target rate by 25 basis points in October almost doubled to 44% on Wednesday afternoon. The market now sees a 39% likelihood that the Fed will raise its target rate by another 25 basis points in December, versus 19% a day ago. In corporate news, State Street (STT) shares were down 4.7% after the financial services company's updated full-year fee revenue outlook trailed Wall Street's expectations, while its Q3 top-line missed market views. Better Home & Finance (BETR) reported a preliminary fiscal Q3 net loss Wednesday of $33.1 million to $34.1 million, narrowing from a loss of $39.1 million a year earlier. Analysts polled by FactSet expected a loss of $30.2 million. Its shares fell 10%. The US Treasury Department and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency have imposed penalties of over $1.21 billion against Bank of America (BAC) for violations of anti-money laundering and sanctions rules, the Treasury Department said late Tuesday. Separately, Bank of America reported Q3 earnings Wednesday of $0.91 per diluted share, down from $1.04 a year earlier and below the FactSet consensus of $1.10. Its shares were down 5.2%. BlackRock (BLK) reported an unexpected increase in Q3 net inflows Wednesday, driven by strong institutional demand and retail inflows. The asset manager's net inflows grew 0.4% year over year to $205.47 billion in the September quarter. Three analysts polled by FactSet expected $180.4 billion. BlackRock shares were slightly higher.