09:13 AM EDT, 10/22/2025 (MT Newswires) -- Financial stocks were edging higher pre-bell Wednesday, with The Financial Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLF) advancing by 0.3%.

The Direxion Daily Financial Bull 3X Shares ( FAS ) was up 0.6% and its bearish counterpart Direxion Daily Financial Bear 3X Shares ( FAZ ) was 0.4% lower.

Capital One Financial ( COF ) stock was up more than 5% after the company's board approved a new repurchase authorization for up to $16 billion common shares. Chief Financial Officer Andrew Young said Capital One Financial ( COF ) also expects to raise its quarterly dividend to $0.80 per share starting in Q4.

Barclays ( BCS ) shares were up more than 4% after the company posted higher total income in Q3 and announced plans to initiate a share buyback of up to 500 million British pounds ($666.7 million).

CME Group ( CME ) stock was down more than 1% after the company reported unchanged Q3 adjusted earnings and lower revenue.