Investors interested in Finance stocks should always be looking to find the best-performing companies in the group. Banner (BANR) is a stock that can certainly grab the attention of many investors, but do its recent returns compare favorably to the sector as a whole? By taking a look at the stock's year-to-date performance in comparison to its Finance peers, we might be able to answer that question.
Banner is one of 884 companies in the Finance group. The Finance group currently sits at #2 within the Zacks Sector Rank. The Zacks Sector Rank gauges the strength of our 16 individual sector groups by measuring the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks within the groups.
The Zacks Rank is a proven system that emphasizes earnings estimates and estimate revisions, highlighting a variety of stocks that are displaying the right characteristics to beat the market over the next one to three months. Banner is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).
Within the past quarter, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for BANR's full-year earnings has moved 4.7% higher. This signals that analyst sentiment is improving and the stock's earnings outlook is more positive.
Based on the latest available data, BANR has gained about 6% so far this year. At the same time, Finance stocks have gained an average of 3.6%. This means that Banner is performing better than its sector in terms of year-to-date returns.
Another Finance stock, which has outperformed the sector so far this year, is Credicorp (BAP). The stock has returned 35.7% year-to-date.
The consensus estimate for Credicorp's current year EPS has increased 1.5% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).
Looking more specifically, Banner belongs to the Financial - Savings and Loan industry, a group that includes 18 individual stocks and currently sits at #65 in the Zacks Industry Rank. On average, stocks in this group have gained 24.1% this year, meaning that BANR is slightly underperforming its industry in terms of year-to-date returns.
In contrast, Credicorp falls under the Banks - Foreign industry. Currently, this industry has 85 stocks and is ranked #85. Since the beginning of the year, the industry has moved +12%.
Banner and Credicorp could continue their solid performance, so investors interested in Finance stocks should continue to pay close attention to these stocks.
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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).