Last week’s rally saw the small caps take off. So far this week, that hasn’t been the case. One of the areas of the market that rallied so dramatically along with the small caps was the regional banks. Unfortunately, over the last few days, it’s also been one of the hardest hit spots. Some of these stocks have more reason than others to give up ground. One of them is today’s Bear of the Day, Brookline Bancorp (BRKL Quick QuoteBRKL - Free Report) ).

Brookline Bancorp, Inc. operates as a bank holding company for the Brookline Bank that provide commercial, business, and retail banking services to corporate, municipal, and retail customers in the United States. Its deposit products include demand checking, NOW, money market, and savings accounts. The company's loan portfolio primarily comprises first mortgage loans secured by commercial, multi-family, and residential real estate properties; loans to business entities comprising commercial lines of credit; loans to condominium associations; loans and leases used to finance equipment for small businesses; financing for construction and development projects; and home equity and other consumer loans. 

Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

The stock is currently a Zacks Rank #5 (Strong Sell) in the Financial – Savings and Loan industry which ranks in the Bottom 40% of our Zacks Industry Rank. The reason for the unfavorable rank is that over the last thirty days, three analysts have cut their estimates for next year. The bearish sentiment has cut down our Zacks Consensus Estimate from $1.12 to 92 cents for next year. That represents a drop of 10.13% for next year. That’s coming on the heels of this year’s 29% contraction in earnings.

There are other stocks within the Financial – Savings and Loan industry which are in the good graces of our Zacks Rank. This includes Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) BankFinancial (BFIN Quick QuoteBFIN - Free Report) and Citizens Community Bancorp (CZWI Quick QuoteCZWI - Free Report) ).