Best & Worst Broker-Dealer Stocks: 2023

Many publicly traded broker-dealer stocks posted healthy gains overall in 2023 as the broader market rallied after a quickly subdued global banking crisis in March. Two firms benefited from their purchase of troubled financial institutions: JPMorgan Chase, which acquired troubled First Republic Bank, and UBS Group, which bought Credit Suisse.  The S&P 500 index ended the year up about 24%, driven by the "Magnificent 7" technology megastocks. The strength of financial industry stocks may be partly reflected in the Vanguard Financials ETF (VFH), which gained 11.59% in 2023. But the SPDR S&P Bank ETF (KBE) moved up just 2.33% last year, based on Yahoo Finance data.  The major broker-dealers start reporting their fourth-quarter 2023 earnings next Friday. Check the gallery to see how their stocks fared in 2023. Data for year-to-date performance was compiled at 10.15 a.m. in New York; the price-to-earnings ratios reflect trailing 12-month figures.