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Is Morgan Stanley (MS) Outperforming Other Finance Stocks 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. Morgan Stanley (MS - Free Report) 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? 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.

Morgan Stanley is a member of our Finance group, which includes 836 different companies and currently sits at #5 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 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. Morgan Stanley is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).

Over the past three months, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for MS' full-year earnings has moved 5.6% higher. This is a sign of improving analyst sentiment and a positive earnings outlook trend.

According to our latest data, MS has moved about 6.4% on a year-to-date basis. Meanwhile, stocks in the Finance group have gained about 0.8% on average. This shows that Morgan Stanley is outperforming its peers so far this year.

BB Seguridade Participacoes SA (BBSEY - Free Report) is another Finance stock that has outperformed the sector so far this year. Since the beginning of the year, the stock has returned 5.5%.

For BB Seguridade Participacoes SA, the consensus EPS estimate for the current year has increased 4.3% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy).

Looking more specifically, Morgan Stanley belongs to the Financial - Investment Bank industry, a group that includes 20 individual stocks and currently sits at #152 in the Zacks Industry Rank. On average, this group has lost an average of 0.5% so far this year, meaning that MS is performing better in terms of year-to-date returns.

On the other hand, BB Seguridade Participacoes SA belongs to the Financial - Miscellaneous Services industry. This 107-stock industry is currently ranked #83. The industry has moved -5.4% year to date.

Investors with an interest in Finance stocks should continue to track Morgan Stanley and BB Seguridade Participacoes SA. These stocks will be looking to continue their solid performance.

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