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Is Ameriprise Financial (AMP) Stock Outpacing Its Finance Peers This Year?

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For those looking to find strong Finance stocks, it is prudent to search for companies in the group that are outperforming their peers. Ameriprise Financial Services (AMP - Free Report) 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.

Ameriprise Financial Services is a member of the Finance sector. This group includes 884 individual stocks and currently holds a Zacks Sector Rank of #2. The Zacks Sector Rank considers 16 different sector groups. The average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks within the groups is measured, and the sectors are listed from best to worst.

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. Ameriprise Financial Services is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for AMP's full-year earnings has moved 2.5% higher within the past quarter. This is a sign of improving analyst sentiment and a positive earnings outlook trend.

According to our latest data, AMP has moved about 8.1% on a year-to-date basis. Meanwhile, the Finance sector has returned an average of -12.1% on a year-to-date basis. As we can see, Ameriprise Financial Services is performing better than its sector in the calendar year.

Another stock in the Finance sector, Bar Harbor Bankshares (BHB - Free Report) , has outperformed the sector so far this year. The stock's year-to-date return is 7.2%.

Over the past three months, Bar Harbor Bankshares' consensus EPS estimate for the current year has increased 2.5%. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).

Breaking things down more, Ameriprise Financial Services is a member of the Financial - Investment Management industry, which includes 45 individual companies and currently sits at #59 in the Zacks Industry Rank. On average, stocks in this group have lost 18.8% this year, meaning that AMP is performing better in terms of year-to-date returns.

Bar Harbor Bankshares, however, belongs to the Banks - Northeast industry. Currently, this 88-stock industry is ranked #45. The industry has moved -16.3% so far this year.

Going forward, investors interested in Finance stocks should continue to pay close attention to Ameriprise Financial Services and Bar Harbor Bankshares as they could maintain their solid performance.


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Ameriprise Financial, Inc. (AMP) - free report >>

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