For those looking to find strong Finance stocks, it is prudent to search for companies in the group that are outperforming their peers. Is Alexander & Baldwin Holdings, Inc. (ALEX) one of those stocks right now? 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.

Alexander & Baldwin Holdings, Inc. is a member of the Finance sector. This group includes 868 individual stocks and currently holds a Zacks Sector Rank of #1. 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 proven system that emphasizes earnings estimates and estimate revisions, highlighting a variety of stocks that are displaying the right characteristics to beat the market over the next one to three months. Alexander & Baldwin Holdings, Inc. is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).

Within the past quarter, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for ALEX's full-year earnings has moved 3.3% higher. This means that analyst sentiment is stronger and the stock's earnings outlook is improving.

Based on the latest available data, ALEX has gained about 3.4% so far this year. In comparison, Finance companies have returned an average of -0.6%. This shows that Alexander & Baldwin Holdings, Inc. is outperforming its peers so far this year.

One other Finance stock that has outperformed the sector so far this year is CME Group (CME). The stock is up 12.9% year-to-date.

Over the past three months, CME Group's consensus EPS estimate for the current year has increased 2.3%. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).

To break things down more, Alexander & Baldwin Holdings, Inc. belongs to the REIT and Equity Trust - Other industry, a group that includes 98 individual companies and currently sits at #127 in the Zacks Industry Rank. On average, this group has gained an average of 5.2% so far this year, meaning that ALEX is slightly underperforming its industry in terms of year-to-date returns.

In contrast, CME Group falls under the Securities and Exchanges industry. Currently, this industry has 7 stocks and is ranked #32. Since the beginning of the year, the industry has moved +9.3%.

Going forward, investors interested in Finance stocks should continue to pay close attention to Alexander & Baldwin Holdings, Inc. and CME Group as they could maintain their solid performance.

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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).

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