(Reuters) - After a miserable 2018, big U.S. bank stocks could be in for a lift if upcoming earnings releases show strong fourth-quarter loan growth helps to offset weak trading revenue.

And some bargain hunters are also betting on stronger 2019 growth than current valuations imply.

The S&P 500 bank index .SPXBK fell 18.4 percent in 2018 compared with a 6.2 percent drop for the broader S&P 500 .SPX as investors fled banks on concerns about slowing economic growth, weakening credit, a flattening yield curve and bets the Federal Reserve would slow down interest rate hikes.

While some investors are still wary of the sector, which was at the epicenter of the last economic downturn, others say the sell-off went too far. Lisa Welch, lead portfolio manager for the John Hancock Regional Bank Fund in Boston, was encouraged by a pickup in loan growth data in the fourth quarter and also expects banks to report improving net interest margins.

“With the valuations they’re trading at, we see banks as an extremely attractive buying opportunity,” said Welch. “Bank stocks were acting like the economy in the U.S. was going into a near term recession. We disagreed.”

S&P 500 banks currently trade around 9 times forward estimates, well below the long-term median of 11.6 and the long-term average of 12.7, according to data from Refinitiv.

“Even with a little more cautious view on the economy, that’s going to slow from the growth we had in 2018, we still think there’s a lot of earnings growth potential,” said Welch.

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