The Macquarie Group Ltd (ASX: MQG) share price has spent today's session in the green.
In early trade Macquarie shares reached their all time high, touching an intraday high of $168.50 before tracing back down, where they are currently exchanging hands at $167.50 apiece.
In addition, whereas the S&P/ASX 200 index (ASX: XJO) has posted a return of 0.9% over the past month, the Macquarie Group share price is 7% in the green.
Image source: Getty Images
What tailwinds are behind the Macquarie Group share price?
Macquarie shares had a strong August, having climbed from a low of $155.61. That signifies an 8% gain from the record high described earlier in this article.
A positive broker note out of investment firm Morgans highlighted Macquarie's exposure to infrastructure and alternatives as a plus for the investment case on Macquarie's shares.
It reiterated its add rating, implying a buying opportunity, and backed this up by assigning a price target of $172.30.
In addition, the bank also issued a capital note offering that is set to inject a further $500 million in liquidity to enhance the company's expansion opportunities. The financing is only costing Macquarie 2.9% per annum, however, the effect on its balance sheet is meaningful.
There is also positive sentiment in the ASX-listed banking basket, which may be lifting the Macquarie share price.
We can see this in two ways. Firstly, the S&P/ASX 200 Banks index (ASX: XBK) is up almost 4% over the month and around 26% over the year. That's well ahead of the broad index.
Then when we look at the Betashares Australian Financials Sector ETF (ASX: QFN) we can see it is up 5% on the month, and also up 23% year to date.
Judging from these two indicators that serve as relevant proxy's to gauge investor sentiment, it appears that the basket of Australian Financials sector shares, including banks like Macquarie, are exhibiting strengths across the board.
There is no market sensitive information for the company of late. Therefore, it stands to reason that investors are pushing the Macquarie Group share price higher on the back of these tailwinds.
Macquarie Group share price snapshot
The Macquarie Group share price has posted a year to date return of 21%, extending the previous 12 month's gain of 31%.
These results have outpaced the broad index's climb of around 25% over the past year.
