Most stocks tick up, including a jump for beaten down banks

Stocks are mostly rising on a steadying Wall Street as battered banks show more strength, at least for now. The S&P 500 was 0.3% higher in midday trading Monday. The Dow and the Nasdaq were mixed. Markets have been in turmoil following the second-and third-largest U.S. bank failures in history earlier this month. Investors have been hunting for what banks could be next to fall as the system creaks under the pressure of much higher interest rates. First Citizens' stock soared after saying it would buy most of Silicon Valley Bank, whose failure sparked the industry’s furor earlier this month.