Today's Top Performers In Financial

All three major indices are trading down today with the Dow Jones Industrial Average ( ^DJI) trading down 112 points (-0.6%) at 17,638 as of Wednesday, May 4, 2016, 12:55 PM ET. The NYSE advances/declines ratio sits at 1,014 issues advancing vs. 1,910 declining with 149 unchanged. The Financial sector currently sits down 0.4% versus the S&P 500, which is down 0.6%. Top gainers within the sector include Ventas ( VTR), up 3.7%, Icahn ( IEP), up 3.7%, Realty Income ( O), up 3.3%, Welltower ( HCN), up 3.0% and Banco Santander (Brasil ( BSBR), up 2.8%. On the negative front, top decliners within the sector include Voya Financial ( VOYA), down 5.5%, Western Union ( WU), down 4.2%, Fifth Third Bancorp ( FITB), down 3.3%, Capital One Financial ( COF), down 3.3% and Bank of Nova Scotia ( BNS), down 3.2%. TheStreet would like to highlight 3 stocks pushing the sector higher today: 3. AvalonBay Communities ( AVB) is one of the companies pushing the Financial sector higher today. As of noon trading, AvalonBay Communities is up $3.24 (1.8%) to $184.62 on average volume. Thus far, 426,763 shares of AvalonBay Communities exchanged hands as compared to its average daily volume of 724,700 shares. The stock has ranged in price between $178.98-$185.19 after having opened the day at $178.98 as compared to the previous trading day's close of $181.38. EXCLUSIVE OFFER: See inside Jim Cramer's multi-million dollar charitable trust portfolio to see the stocks he thinks could be potential winners. Click here to see his holdings for 14-days FREE. AvalonBay Communities, Inc. engages in the development, redevelopment, acquisition, ownership, and operation of multifamily communities in the United States. AvalonBay Communities has a market cap of $24.8 billion and is part of the real estate industry. Shares are down 1.5% year-to-date as of the close of trading on Tuesday. Currently there are 9 analysts who rate AvalonBay Communities a buy, 1 analyst rates it a sell, and 6 rate it a hold. TheStreet Ratings rates AvalonBay Communities as a buy. The company's strengths can be seen in multiple areas, such as its solid stock price performance, increase in net income, revenue growth, expanding profit margins and good cash flow from operations. Although the company may harbor some minor weaknesses, we feel they are unlikely to have a significant impact on results. Get the full AvalonBay Communities Ratings Report now. EXCLUSIVE OFFER: See inside Jim Cramer's multi-million dollar charitable trust portfolio to see the stocks he thinks could be potential winners. Click here to see his holdings for 14-days FREE. 2. As of noon trading, Equity Residential ( EQR) is up $1.04 (1.5%) to $70.27 on average volume. Thus far, 826,173 shares of Equity Residential exchanged hands as compared to its average daily volume of 2.0 million shares. The stock has ranged in price between $68.50-$70.40 after having opened the day at $69.05 as compared to the previous trading day's close of $69.23. EXCLUSIVE OFFER: See inside Jim Cramer's multi-million dollar charitable trust portfolio to see the stocks he thinks could be potential winners. Click here to see his holdings for 14-days FREE. Equity Residential, a real estate investment trust (REIT), engages in the acquisition, development, and management of multifamily properties in the United States. Equity Residential has a market cap of $25.2 billion and is part of the real estate industry. Shares are down 15.2% year-to-date as of the close of trading on Tuesday. Currently there are 4 analysts who rate Equity Residential a buy, no analysts rate it a sell, and 15 rate it a hold. TheStreet Ratings rates Equity Residential as a buy. The company's strengths can be seen in multiple areas, such as its compelling growth in net income, notable return on equity, expanding profit margins and impressive record of earnings per share growth. We feel its strengths outweigh the fact that the company has had lackluster performance in the stock itself. Get the full Equity Residential Ratings Report now. EXCLUSIVE OFFER: See inside Jim Cramer's multi-million dollar charitable trust portfolio to see the stocks he thinks could be potential winners. Click here to see his holdings for 14-days FREE. 1. As of noon trading, Simon Property Group ( SPG) is up $1.58 (0.8%) to $206.54 on light volume. Thus far, 372,617 shares of Simon Property Group exchanged hands as compared to its average daily volume of 1.2 million shares. The stock has ranged in price between $203.27-$206.76 after having opened the day at $203.84 as compared to the previous trading day's close of $204.96. EXCLUSIVE OFFER: See inside Jim Cramer's multi-million dollar charitable trust portfolio to see the stocks he thinks could be potential winners. Click here to see his holdings for 14-days FREE. Simon Property Group, Inc. is an equity real estate investment trust. The firm invests in the real estate markets across the globe. It engages in investment, ownership, management, and development of properties. Simon Property Group has a market cap of $64.4 billion and is part of the real estate industry. Shares are up 5.4% year-to-date as of the close of trading on Tuesday. Currently there are 14 analysts who rate Simon Property Group a buy, 1 analyst rates it a sell, and 1 rates it a hold. TheStreet Ratings rates Simon Property Group as a buy. The company's strengths can be seen in multiple areas, such as its revenue growth, notable return on equity, expanding profit margins and solid stock price performance. We feel its strengths outweigh the fact that the company has had sub par growth in net income. Get the full Simon Property Group Ratings Report now. EXCLUSIVE OFFER: See inside Jim Cramer's multi-million dollar charitable trust portfolio to see the stocks he thinks could be potential winners. Click here to see his holdings for 14-days FREE. If you are interested in one of these 3 stocks, ETFs may be of interest. Investors who are bullish on the financial sector could consider Financial Select Sector SPDR ( XLF) while those bearish on the financial sector could consider Proshares Short Financials ( SEF).