RFRegions Financial Corporation

Regions Financial is a bank of the American South, a region gaining population and businesses.

Household and business deposits fund corporate loans, mortgages and consumer credit; the rate spread supplies most of the result. Geography works for the bank here: people and manufacturing moving south increase both the deposit base and loan demand without the cost of entering a new region.

Fee income — corporate account services, wealth management, mortgage servicing — smooths the rate cycle. Risks are the sector's standard ones: book quality in a downturn, commercial real estate exposure, deposit stability and capital requirements. A distinguishing feature is a large share of low-cost current accounts, which makes the bank a winner from high rates. The dividend is high.