<font>First Republic Bank Sold to Investors</font>

The deal has been confirmed that First Republic Bank is being sold by Bank of America (BAC) to a group on investors which include the current management, Colony Capital, and General Atlantic. The bank had assets of $19 billion when it was sold as a part of Merrill Lynch in January. Banc of America was off slightly on the news today.

<font>Merrill Lynch Purchase</font>

First Republic was last purchased for $1.8 billion by Merrill Lynch in 2007 and is now reportedly being sold for near $1 billion. The banks wealth management division was similar to the currently owned US Trust asset under BAC ownership. Bank of America is selling assets to improve it's balance sheet at this time.

<font>Wells Fargo and US Bancorp</font>

Bank of America’s asset sales are occurring while other banks like Wells Fargo (WFC) and US Bancorp (USB) report earnings that are modestly higher than expectations. Wells Fargo reported a $2.6 billion profit for the third quarter even as loan losses expanded. US Bancorp reported a 4.7% profit growth for the quarter and stated that their loan loses have not grown as much as within previous quarters.

<font>Bank of America</font>

Bank of America missed it’s last quarterly estimate by 23.8% and has seen analysts reduce their expectations for the fourth quarter of 2009, the first quarter of 2010, and the year ending in December. BAC stock is not the strongest bank stock at this time and could experience selling pressure in the months to come.

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