Bill Gross Scoops up Regional Bank Stocks

Battered regional banks got a vote of confidence from the one-time king of the bond world.

In his investment outlook published Friday, Bill Gross, the former chief investment officer of Pacific Investment Management Co., said he has purchased stocks including Western Alliance Bancorp, Synovus Financial Corp. and PacWest Bancorp as well as SPDR S&P Regional Banking ETF.

Following a series of bank failures in early March, shares of small lenders have slumped, trading at a discount of about 60% of the value of their net assets.

That, together with a return-on-equity of around 10%, provides “an enticing long-term investment,” according to Gross, who retired from asset management in 2019.

“I’ve always told myself and close friends that I wish I could start a bank,” wrote Gross. “It’s a license to make money even when run conservatively. Admittedly, regionals will have their cyclical problems if and when a recession occurs, but my long-time wish to own a bank is now possible via public markets.”

In addition, smaller regional banks may be “gobbled up” by larger players at a premium to the current prices, he said.

Since his retirement four years ago, Gross continues to use his outlook to express economic views and offer investment tips, a tradition that dates back to the 1970s, when he was building Pimco into a bond powerhouse.

He was ousted from the company in 2014, after clashing with other executives.