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Are Finance Stocks Lagging Brown & Brown (BRO) 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. Is Brown & Brown (BRO - Free Report) one of those stocks right now? A quick glance at the company's year-to-date performance in comparison to the rest of the Finance sector should help us answer this question.

Brown & Brown is one of 862 individual stocks in the Finance sector. Collectively, these companies sit at #4 in the Zacks Sector Rank. 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 is a successful stock-picking model that emphasizes earnings estimates and estimate revisions. The system highlights a number of different stocks that could be poised to outperform the broader market over the next one to three months. Brown & Brown is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).

Within the past quarter, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for BRO's full-year earnings has moved 1.6% higher. This signals that analyst sentiment is improving and the stock's earnings outlook is more positive.

According to our latest data, BRO has moved about 37% on a year-to-date basis. Meanwhile, stocks in the Finance group have gained about 11.8% on average. This means that Brown & Brown is performing better than its sector in terms of year-to-date returns.

One other Finance stock that has outperformed the sector so far this year is Iron Mountain (IRM - Free Report) . The stock is up 38.5% year-to-date.

The consensus estimate for Iron Mountain's current year EPS has increased 1.1% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).

To break things down more, Brown & Brown belongs to the Insurance - Brokerage industry, a group that includes 9 individual companies and currently sits at #57 in the Zacks Industry Rank. Stocks in this group have gained about 16.4% so far this year, so BRO is performing better this group in terms of year-to-date returns.

On the other hand, Iron Mountain belongs to the REIT and Equity Trust - Other industry. This 95-stock industry is currently ranked #160. The industry has moved -1.8% year to date.

Investors with an interest in Finance stocks should continue to track Brown & Brown and Iron Mountain. These stocks will be looking to continue their solid performance.


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