Analysts Favor Buying Several European Bank Shares After RBI Rally

Raiffeisenbank International experienced volatile trading after short seller Grizzly accused it of facilitating sanctions evasion, leading to a steep price drop that the bank contested. The share price later recovered and surged over four percent when a Vienna civil court granted RBI access to the assets of its Russian subsidiary Rasperia, among them shares in the domestic construction firm Strabag. RBI's stock now trades around 64 euros, close to the average target set by Bloomberg-tracked analysts, with roughly one-third advising a purchase and the majority recommending a hold.

Analysts see greater upside in other European banks, noting that a majority of recommendations for those stocks are buys, and one bank received buy votes from 26 of 27 analysts. Greek banks stood out as particularly attractive in the analysts' view.