TEW Magazine

  With the announcement of the $3.5 billion sale of loans to alternative investment manager Ares Management, PacWest (PACW) gave a regional bank that had been severely harmed early this year an additional boost. PacWest stock rises 4% on Monday as a result of the agreement, the most recent of numerous steps taken by the Beverly Hills, California-based lender to reduce its balance sheet. Other local banks also increased.  KBW Regional Bank Index (BKX) Following the demise of Silicon Valley Bank on March 10, a number of regional lenders battled to retain depositors, including PacWest. On May 4, the week after regulators seized San Francisco-based bank First Republic and sold the majority of its operations to JPMorgan Chase (JPM),  regional bank  stocks reached a year-to-date low. However, since then, PacWest stock rises for four of the past six weeks on the belief that regional banks’ worst days are behind them. The KBW Regional Bank Index (BKX) has increased 9% throu...