Investors interested in Finance stocks should always be looking to find the best-performing companies in the group. Is JPMorgan Chase & Co. (JPM) 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.
JPMorgan Chase & Co. is one of 868 companies in the Finance group. The Finance group currently sits at #4 within 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 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).
Within the past quarter, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for JPM's full-year earnings has moved 3.4% higher. This signals that analyst sentiment is improving and the stock's earnings outlook is more positive.
Based on the latest available data, JPM has gained about 27.5% so far this year. Meanwhile, stocks in the Finance group have gained about 13.4% on average. As we can see, JPMorgan Chase & Co. is performing better than its sector in the calendar year.
Another stock in the Finance sector, Aviva (AVVIY), has outperformed the sector so far this year. The stock's year-to-date return is 55.4%.
For Aviva, the consensus EPS estimate for the current year has increased 17% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).
Breaking things down more, JPMorgan Chase & Co. is a member of the Financial - Investment Bank industry, which includes 21 individual companies and currently sits at #32 in the Zacks Industry Rank. This group has gained an average of 28.9% so far this year, so JPM is slightly underperforming its industry in this area.
In contrast, Aviva falls under the Insurance - Life Insurance industry. Currently, this industry has 16 stocks and is ranked #54. Since the beginning of the year, the industry has moved +1.7%.
Investors interested in the Finance sector may want to keep a close eye on JPMorgan Chase & Co. and Aviva as they attempt 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
JPMorgan Chase & Co. (JPM): Free Stock Analysis Report Aviva PLC (AVVIY): Free Stock Analysis ReportThis article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).
Zacks Investment Research
