Is Artisan Partners Asset Management (APAM) Stock Outpacing Its Finance Peers 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. Artisan Partners Asset Management (APAM) 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.
Artisan Partners Asset Management is one of 853 individual stocks in the Finance sector. Collectively, these companies sit at #15 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. Artisan Partners Asset Management is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).
Over the past three months, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for APAM's full-year earnings has moved 6.7% higher. This is a sign of improving analyst sentiment and a positive earnings outlook trend.
Based on the latest available data, APAM has gained about 25.5% so far this year. At the same time, Finance stocks have gained an average of 5.8%. This shows that Artisan Partners Asset Management is outperforming its peers so far this year.
Another stock in the Finance sector, Axa Sa (AXAHY), has outperformed the sector so far this year. The stock's year-to-date return is 7.3%.
The consensus estimate for Axa Sa's current year EPS has increased 0.4% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).
To break things down more, Artisan Partners Asset Management belongs to the Financial - Investment Management industry, a group that includes 40 individual companies and currently sits at #163 in the Zacks Industry Rank. This group has gained an average of 7.5% so far this year, so APAM is performing better in this area.
On the other hand, Axa Sa belongs to the Insurance - Multi line industry. This 35-stock industry is currently ranked #109. The industry has moved -7.7% year to date.
Going forward, investors interested in Finance stocks should continue to pay close attention to Artisan Partners Asset Management and Axa Sa as they could maintain their solid performance.
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Artisan Partners Asset Management Inc. (APAM) : Free Stock Analysis Report
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