Is Applied Industrial Technologies (AIT) Stock Outpacing Its Industrial Products Peers This Year?
The Industrial Products group has plenty of great stocks, but investors should always be looking for companies that are outperforming their peers. Has Applied Industrial Technologies (AIT) been one of those stocks this year? A quick glance at the company's year-to-date performance in comparison to the rest of the Industrial Products sector should help us answer this question.
Applied Industrial Technologies is a member of the Industrial Products sector. This group includes 222 individual stocks and currently holds a Zacks Sector Rank of #4. 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. Applied Industrial Technologies is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).
Within the past quarter, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for AIT's full-year earnings has moved 4.9% higher. This signals that analyst sentiment is improving and the stock's earnings outlook is more positive.
According to our latest data, AIT has moved about 18.2% on a year-to-date basis. Meanwhile, stocks in the Industrial Products group have gained about 7.3% on average. This means that Applied Industrial Technologies is outperforming the sector as a whole this year.
Alamo Group (ALG) is another Industrial Products stock that has outperformed the sector so far this year. Since the beginning of the year, the stock has returned 19.7%.
The consensus estimate for Alamo Group's current year EPS has increased 1% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).
Looking more specifically, Applied Industrial Technologies belongs to the Manufacturing - General Industrial industry, which includes 42 individual stocks and currently sits at #76 in the Zacks Industry Rank. This group has gained an average of 9.9% so far this year, so AIT is performing better in this area.
In contrast, Alamo Group falls under the Manufacturing - Farm Equipment industry. Currently, this industry has 8 stocks and is ranked #110. Since the beginning of the year, the industry has moved -10.4%.
Going forward, investors interested in Industrial Products stocks should continue to pay close attention to Applied Industrial Technologies and Alamo Group as they could maintain their solid performance.
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Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. (AIT) : Free Stock Analysis Report
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