Is Banco Bilbao Viscaya Argentaria (BBVA) 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. Banco Bilbao (BBVA) 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? 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.

Banco Bilbao is one of 868 individual stocks in the Finance sector. Collectively, these companies sit 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 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. Banco Bilbao is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for BBVA's full-year earnings has moved 2.4% higher within the past quarter. This means that analyst sentiment is stronger and the stock's earnings outlook is improving.

Based on the most recent data, BBVA has returned 96.3% so far this year. At the same time, Finance stocks have gained an average of 13.6%. This means that Banco Bilbao is performing better than its sector in terms of year-to-date returns.

Bridgewater (BWB) is another Finance stock that has outperformed the sector so far this year. Since the beginning of the year, the stock has returned 24.6%.

Over the past three months, Bridgewater's consensus EPS estimate for the current year has increased 8.9%. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy).

Looking more specifically, Banco Bilbao belongs to the Banks - Foreign industry, which includes 67 individual stocks and currently sits at #77 in the Zacks Industry Rank. This group has gained an average of 38.2% so far this year, so BBVA is performing better in this area.

In contrast, Bridgewater falls under the Banks - Northeast industry. Currently, this industry has 78 stocks and is ranked #53. Since the beginning of the year, the industry has moved +4.9%.

Investors with an interest in Finance stocks should continue to track Banco Bilbao and Bridgewater. These stocks will be looking to continue their solid performance.

Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report

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

Zacks Investment Research