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Are Finance Stocks Lagging BancFirst (BANF) 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 BancFirst (BANF - Free Report) one of those stocks right now? By taking a look at the stock's year-to-date performance in comparison to its Finance peers, we might be able to answer that question.

BancFirst is one of 885 companies in the Finance group. The Finance group currently sits at #1 within 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. BancFirst is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #1 (Strong Buy).

Within the past quarter, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for BANF's full-year earnings has moved 3.6% higher. This shows that analyst sentiment has improved and the company's earnings outlook is stronger.

Based on the latest available data, BANF has gained about 47% so far this year. At the same time, Finance stocks have lost an average of 10.3%. This means that BancFirst is performing better than its sector in terms of year-to-date returns.

Another Finance stock, which has outperformed the sector so far this year, is Bank OZK (OZK - Free Report) . The stock has returned 1.2% year-to-date.

The consensus estimate for Bank OZK's current year EPS has increased 0.5% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).

Breaking things down more, BancFirst is a member of the Banks - Southwest industry, which includes 19 individual companies and currently sits at #47 in the Zacks Industry Rank. Stocks in this group have gained about 4.1% so far this year, so BANF is performing better this group in terms of year-to-date returns.

Bank OZK, however, belongs to the Banks - Northeast industry. Currently, this 88-stock industry is ranked #30. The industry has moved -11.4% so far this year.

Investors with an interest in Finance stocks should continue to track BancFirst and Bank OZK. These stocks will be looking to continue their solid performance.


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