Is AIA (AAGIY) 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. AIA (AAGIY) 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? Let's take a closer look at the stock's year-to-date performance to find out.

AIA is one of 847 individual stocks in the Finance sector. Collectively, these companies sit at #2 in 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. AIA is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).

Over the past 90 days, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for AAGIY's full-year earnings has moved 1% higher. This is a sign of improving analyst sentiment and a positive earnings outlook trend.

Based on the latest available data, AAGIY has gained about 5.4% so far this year. At the same time, Finance stocks have lost an average of 6.2%. This means that AIA 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 Bank of Montreal (BMO). The stock has returned 5.1% year-to-date.

For Bank of Montreal, the consensus EPS estimate for the current year has increased 5.3% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).

Looking more specifically, AIA belongs to the Insurance - Life Insurance industry, a group that includes 16 individual stocks and currently sits at #83 in the Zacks Industry Rank. On average, this group has lost an average of 5.9% so far this year, meaning that AAGIY is performing better in terms of year-to-date returns.

Bank of Montreal, however, belongs to the Banks - Foreign industry. Currently, this 65-stock industry is ranked #42. The industry has moved -5.5% so far this year.

Investors interested in the Finance sector may want to keep a close eye on AIA and Bank of Montreal as they attempt to continue their solid performance.

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AIA (AAGIY): Free Stock Analysis Report

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

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