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CNBC Daily Open: Banking fears stir once again

A sign is pictured above a branch of the New York Community Bank in Yonkers, New York, U.S., January 31, 2024.
Mike Segar | Reuters

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his report is from today's CNBC Daily Open, our international markets newsletter. CNBC Daily Open brings investors up to speed on everything they need to know, no matter where they are. Like what you see? You can subscribe here.

What you need to know today

S&P inches higher
Wall Street ended Wednesday's session solidly in the green. The S&P 500 rose and inched closer to the milestone 5,000 level, while the Nasdaq Composite climbed 0.95%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average  also rallied 156 points, to close at and an all-time high on the back of another positive earnings session.

Disney shines
Disney's earnings topped estimates as the media giant raised guidance, underlining the progress it made to slash costs. The company also said it will take a $1.5 billion stake in Fortnite studio Epic Games and launch its flagship ESPN streaming service in fall 2025. 

SoftBank gains
Masayoshi Son's SoftBank booked a more than $16 billion gain on its stake in Arm, which rallied in after-hours trading on a strong forecast. The company posted net income of $87 million, or 8 cents per share and quarterly revenue rose 14% from a year earlier.

Alibaba disappoints
Alibaba's revenue missed market estimates, but the e-commerce giant said it is boosting the size of its share buyback program by $25 billion. Still, the company's U.S.-listed shares fell more than 5%. China's difficult macroeconomic environment has weighed on Alibaba as consumer sentiment remains weak.  

[PRO] Bullish on Nintendo
Analysts are bullish on Nintendo and expect the Japanese video game's stock price to rise by over 30% in the next 12 months. But that depends on whether the company's highly anticipated console turns out to be a success, according to equity analyst David Gibson.

The bottom line

Trouble is brewing around another U.S. regional lender that has renewed Wall Street worries.

New York Community Bank moved quickly to reassure investors about its financial health after Moody's cut its credit rating to junk.

The bank also named Alessandro DiNello as the new executive chairman to help stabilize the operations.  

Trying to calm market jitters, DiNello said NYCB has seen "virtually no deposit outflow" from retail branches, adding its liquidity position remained strong.

The moves sparked a 7% jump in NYCB shares Wednesday after an initial decline. Yet, it's a small dent in the stock's more than 50% fall since the bank posted a surprise fourth-quarter loss last week. Fears were also exacerbated as the results showed mounting losses on commercial real estate.

Moody's cited "multi-faceted financial, risk-management and governance challenges" at NYCB in its note late Tuesday downgrading the bank.

"In Moody's view, control functions with strong knowledge of a bank's risks are key to a bank's credit strength."

NYCB's problems are reminiscent of the pressure the sector came under last year following the failure of Silicon Valley Bank, that sparked a regional banking crisis.  

It remains to be seen whether the latest measures will be enough to boost investor confidence or will there be more surprises to come.

— CNBC's Hugh Son contributed to this report. 

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