First Republic Bank Shares Plummet Amid Health Concerns and Financial Crises

First Republic Bank shares plummeted Wednesday morning at the start of trading on the New York Stock Exchange and have lost more than 50% of their value this week, amid doubts about the bank’s health and afterward. the collapse of two other financial institutions.

The shares fell 16%, following an even steeper loss on Tuesday, after the bank revealed that depositors had withdrawn more than $100 billion last month following the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank.

First Republic said late Monday it was only able to stop the bleeding when a consortium of other banks saved it by depositing $30 billion in uninsured funds with it.

The San Francisco bank plans to sell nonperforming assets, including low-interest mortgages offered to wealthy clients. It also plans to lay off up to a quarter of its workforce, which totaled some 7,200 employees at the end of last year.

A Citi analyst downgraded First Republic on Wednesday, saying in a note to clients that much uncertainty remains about the institution’s results and losses beyond next year.

“The high cost of your loans relative to your income puts you under water and you will likely be in losses until you can pay off your balance,” the note says.

As of Tuesday’s close, First Republic shares were down 49% to settle at $8.10, a fraction of their value a year ago when they were at $170.

First Republic reported results for the first quarter of the year on Monday, showing it had $173.5 billion in deposits before Silicon Valley Bank collapsed on March 9. On April 21, it had deposits of 102.7 billion, including the 30 billion deposited by the consortium of banks. Since the end of March its deposits have been relatively stable.

The bank’s shares, which were nearly $150 in February, were around $6 Wednesday morning.