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Has Axis Capital Holdings (AXS) Outpaced Other Finance Stocks This Year?

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The Finance group has plenty of great stocks, but investors should always be looking for companies that are outperforming their peers. Has Axis Capital (AXS - Free Report) been one of those stocks this year? 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.

Axis Capital is a member of our Finance group, which includes 894 different companies and currently sits at #5 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 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. Axis Capital is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).

Within the past quarter, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for AXS' full-year earnings has moved 2.1% higher. This means that analyst sentiment is stronger and the stock's earnings outlook is improving.

Based on the most recent data, AXS has returned 4.5% so far this year. At the same time, Finance stocks have lost an average of 10.6%. This means that Axis Capital is performing better than its sector in terms of year-to-date returns.

Cullen/Frost Bankers (CFR - Free Report) is another Finance stock that has outperformed the sector so far this year. Since the beginning of the year, the stock has returned 4.6%.

In Cullen/Frost Bankers' case, the consensus EPS estimate for the current year increased 14.1% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy).

To break things down more, Axis Capital belongs to the Insurance - Property and Casualty industry, a group that includes 40 individual companies and currently sits at #72 in the Zacks Industry Rank. On average, this group has gained an average of 5.4% so far this year, meaning that AXS is slightly underperforming its industry in terms of year-to-date returns.

Cullen/Frost Bankers, however, belongs to the Banks - Southwest industry. Currently, this 18-stock industry is ranked #24. The industry has moved -0.7% so far this year.

Going forward, investors interested in Finance stocks should continue to pay close attention to Axis Capital and Cullen/Frost Bankers as they could maintain their solid performance.


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