Sector Update: Financial Stocks Decline Late Afternoon

03:58 PM EDT, 05/19/2026 (MT Newswires) -- Financial stocks were lower in late Tuesday afternoon trading, with the NYSE Financial Index decreasing 0.5% and the State Street Financial Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLF) shedding 1.1%.

The Philadelphia Housing Index was falling 1.9%, and the State Street Real Estate Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLRE) was up 0.2%.

Bitcoin (BTC-USD) was decreasing 0.2% to $76,806, and the yield for 10-year US Treasuries rose 4.4 basis points to 4.667%.

In economic news, US pending home sales increased more than expected last month as home buyers apparently shrugged off mounting economic uncertainty. The forward-looking indicator of home sales based on contract signings increased 1.4% month over month in April, the National Association of Realtors said Tuesday. Analysts expected a 1% gain, according to a survey compiled by Bloomberg.

In corporate news, Hanover Insurance (THG) shares fell 2.2% after BMO downgraded the company's stock to market perform from outperform.

Blackstone (BX) shares were down 2.3% after Bloomberg reported Tuesday the company has dropped out of a consortium exploring a takeover of German media group Stroeer. Separately, Blackstone said late Monday it is forming a US-based joint venture with Alphabet's (GOOGL) Google to provide AI-focused data center capacity and cloud computing services. Blackstone said it will invest $5 billion in equity initially for the JV, which plans to bring its first 500 megawatts of capacity online in 2027 and expand further over time.

Blue Owl (OWL) Co-Founder Doug Ostrover is selling his stake in the NFL's Washington Commanders back to the Josh Harris-led ownership group, Bloomberg reported. Blue Owl shares fell 1%.

Lloyds Banking (LYG) is preparing to expand its US infrastructure financing business, including lending tied to the fast-growing data center sector, the Financial Times reported. The UK lender is aiming to build a US infrastructure bank focused on large construction projects and sectors such as green energy, while supporting UK corporate clients with US operations, the report said. Lloyds shares were fractionally lower.

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