For those looking to find strong Finance stocks, it is prudent to search for companies in the group that are outperforming their peers. Ameris Bancorp (ABCB) 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.
Ameris Bancorp is a member of the Finance sector. This group includes 863 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 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. Ameris Bancorp is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).
Over the past 90 days, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for ABCB's full-year earnings has moved 4.7% higher. This signals that analyst sentiment is improving and the stock's earnings outlook is more positive.
Based on the latest available data, ABCB has gained about 24.5% so far this year. Meanwhile, the Finance sector has returned an average of 16.1% on a year-to-date basis. As we can see, Ameris Bancorp is performing better than its sector in the calendar year.
Another stock in the Finance sector, Bank First Corporation (BFC), has outperformed the sector so far this year. The stock's year-to-date return is 37.3%.
The consensus estimate for Bank First Corporation's current year EPS has increased 1.4% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).
To break things down more, Ameris Bancorp belongs to the Banks - Southeast industry, a group that includes 56 individual companies and currently sits at #42 in the Zacks Industry Rank. On average, this group has gained an average of 6.5% so far this year, meaning that ABCB is performing better in terms of year-to-date returns.
In contrast, Bank First Corporation falls under the Banks - Northeast industry. Currently, this industry has 76 stocks and is ranked #86. Since the beginning of the year, the industry has moved +12.4%.
Investors interested in the Finance sector may want to keep a close eye on Ameris Bancorp and Bank First Corporation as they attempt to continue their solid performance.
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Ameris Bancorp (ABCB): Free Stock Analysis Report Bank First National Corporation (BFC): Free Stock Analysis ReportThis article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).
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