Is Alerus Financial (ALRS) Outperforming Other Finance Stocks This Year?

For those looking to find strong Finance stocks, it is prudent to search for companies in the group that are outperforming their peers. Has Alerus (ALRS) been one of those stocks this year? Let's take a closer look at the stock's year-to-date performance to find out.

Alerus is a member of our Finance group, which includes 881 different companies and currently sits at #4 in the Zacks Sector Rank. The Zacks Sector Rank includes 16 different groups and is listed in order from best to worst in terms of the average Zacks Rank of the individual companies within each of these sectors.

The Zacks Rank emphasizes earnings estimates and estimate revisions to find stocks with improving earnings outlooks. This system has a long record of success, and these stocks tend to be on track to beat the market over the next one to three months. Alerus is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).

Over the past 90 days, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for ALRS' full-year earnings has moved 19.8% higher. This shows that analyst sentiment has improved and the company's earnings outlook is stronger.

Based on the latest available data, ALRS has gained about 37.1% so far this year. At the same time, Finance stocks have gained an average of 5.6%. This shows that Alerus is outperforming its peers so far this year.

Another Finance stock, which has outperformed the sector so far this year, is Banco Comercial Portugues S.A. Unsponsored ADR (BPCGY). The stock has returned 20.1% year-to-date.

Over the past three months, Banco Comercial Portugues S.A. Unsponsored ADR's consensus EPS estimate for the current year has increased 14.8%. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).

Looking more specifically, Alerus belongs to the Financial - Miscellaneous Services industry, which includes 115 individual stocks and currently sits at #153 in the Zacks Industry Rank. On average, stocks in this group have lost 10.6% this year, meaning that ALRS is performing better in terms of year-to-date returns.

Banco Comercial Portugues S.A. Unsponsored ADR, however, belongs to the Banks - Foreign industry. Currently, this 85-stock industry is ranked #91. The industry has moved +14.9% so far this year.

Investors with an interest in Finance stocks should continue to track Alerus and Banco Comercial Portugues S.A. Unsponsored ADR. These stocks will be looking to continue their solid performance.

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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).

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