Investors focused on the Finance space have likely heard of Qudian Inc. Sponsored (QD Quick QuoteQD - Free Report) , but is the stock performing well in comparison to the rest of its sector peers? One simple way to answer this question is to take a look at the year-to-date performance of QD and the rest of the Finance group's stocks.

Qudian Inc. Sponsored is one of 856 companies in the Finance group. The Finance group currently sits at #8 within the Zacks Sector Rank. The Zacks Sector Rank gauges the strength of our 16 individual sector groups by measuring the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks within the groups.

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. QD is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #1 (Strong Buy).

Over the past three months, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for QD's full-year earnings has moved 23.43% higher. This is a sign of improving analyst sentiment and a positive earnings outlook trend.

Based on the latest available data, QD has gained about 100.70% so far this year. Meanwhile, stocks in the Finance group have gained about 10.86% on average. This means that Qudian Inc. Sponsored is outperforming the sector as a whole this year.

Breaking things down more, QD is a member of the Financial - Consumer Loans industry, which includes 22 individual companies and currently sits at #20 in the Zacks Industry Rank. This group has gained an average of 35.22% so far this year, so QD is performing better in this area.

QD will likely be looking to continue its solid performance, so investors interested in Finance stocks should continue to pay close attention to the company.