Sector Update: Financial Stocks Decline in Afternoon Trading

01:52 PM EDT, 10/31/2025 (MT Newswires) -- Financial stocks fell in Friday afternoon trading with the NYSE Financial Index and the Financial Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLF) each dropping 0.3%.

The Philadelphia Housing Index declined 0.6%, and the Real Estate Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLRE) shed 0.4%.

Bitcoin (BTC-USD) rose 0.6% to $108,975, and the yield for 10-year US Treasuries was little changed at 4.09%.

In regulatory news, the Federal Reserve plans to shrink its banking supervision division by about 30% by the end of next year, reducing staff to around 350 from 500, The Wall Street Journal reported Friday, citing an internal memo. The report said the move, announced by Vice Chair Michelle Bowman, reflects her plan to streamline the division by reducing management layers and restructuring operations.

In economic news, the Institute for Supply Management's Chicago PMI reading rose to 43.8 in October from 40.6 in September, stronger than the 42.0 print expected in a survey compiled by Bloomberg.

In corporate news, Bancorp (TBBK) shares fell 15% after the company reported Q3 earnings and adjusted revenue that missed Wall Street estimates.

Brighthouse Financial (BHF) is in advanced talks to be taken private by Mubadala Capital-backed Aquarian Holdings in a $4 billion deal, The Financial Times reported. Brighthouse shares jumped past 27%.

UBS (UBS) has written down its effective interest in French payments provider Worldline, which experienced a stock crash earlier in the year, Bloomberg reported. UBS shares were up 0.5%.

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