For those looking to find strong Finance stocks, it is prudent to search for companies in the group that are outperforming their peers. Has Associated Banc-Corp (ASB) been one of those stocks this year? Let's take a closer look at the stock's year-to-date performance to find out.

Associated Banc-Corp is a member of the Finance sector. This group includes 871 individual stocks and currently holds a Zacks Sector Rank of #1. The Zacks Sector Rank considers 16 different groups, measuring the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks within the sector to gauge the strength of each group.

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. Associated Banc-Corp is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #1 (Strong Buy).

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for ASB's full-year earnings has moved 4.3% higher within the past quarter. This means that analyst sentiment is stronger and the stock's earnings outlook is improving.

According to our latest data, ASB has moved about 7.2% on a year-to-date basis. Meanwhile, stocks in the Finance group have gained about 6.6% on average. This shows that Associated Banc-Corp is outperforming its peers so far this year.

Another stock in the Finance sector, Interactive Brokers Group, Inc. (IBKR), has outperformed the sector so far this year. The stock's year-to-date return is 29.2%.

For Interactive Brokers Group, Inc. the consensus EPS estimate for the current year has increased 4.9% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy).

Looking more specifically, Associated Banc-Corp belongs to the Banks - Midwest industry, which includes 29 individual stocks and currently sits at #10 in the Zacks Industry Rank. On average, this group has gained an average of 5% so far this year, meaning that ASB is performing better in terms of year-to-date returns.

In contrast, Interactive Brokers Group, Inc. falls under the Financial - Investment Bank industry. Currently, this industry has 21 stocks and is ranked #2. Since the beginning of the year, the industry has moved +14.1%.

Investors with an interest in Finance stocks should continue to track Associated Banc-Corp and Interactive Brokers Group, Inc. These stocks will be looking to continue their solid performance.

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