Are Consumer Discretionary Stocks Lagging Central Garden & Pet (CENT) This Year?
The Consumer Discretionary group has plenty of great stocks, but investors should always be looking for companies that are outperforming their peers. Central Garden (CENT) is a stock that can certainly grab the attention of many investors, but do its recent returns compare favorably to the sector as a whole? A quick glance at the company's year-to-date performance in comparison to the rest of the Consumer Discretionary sector should help us answer this question.
Central Garden is one of 281 companies in the Consumer Discretionary group. The Consumer Discretionary group currently sits at #13 within the Zacks Sector Rank. The Zacks Sector Rank includes 16 different groups and is listed in order from best to worst in terms of the average Zacks Rank of the individual companies within each of these sectors.
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. Central Garden is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).
Within the past quarter, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for CENT's full-year earnings has moved 10.2% higher. This signals that analyst sentiment is improving and the stock's earnings outlook is more positive.
According to our latest data, CENT has moved about 15.5% on a year-to-date basis. Meanwhile, the Consumer Discretionary sector has returned an average of 5.3% on a year-to-date basis. This means that Central Garden is performing better than its sector in terms of year-to-date returns.
Another Consumer Discretionary stock, which has outperformed the sector so far this year, is G-III Apparel Group (GIII). The stock has returned 74.5% year-to-date.
For G-III Apparel Group, the consensus EPS estimate for the current year has increased 14.1% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy).
Breaking things down more, Central Garden is a member of the Consumer Products - Discretionary industry, which includes 21 individual companies and currently sits at #173 in the Zacks Industry Rank. Stocks in this group have gained about 30.9% so far this year, so CENT is slightly underperforming its industry this group in terms of year-to-date returns.
On the other hand, G-III Apparel Group belongs to the Textile - Apparel industry. This 19-stock industry is currently ranked #179. The industry has moved -8.5% year to date.
Investors with an interest in Consumer Discretionary stocks should continue to track Central Garden and G-III Apparel Group. These stocks will be looking to continue their solid performance.
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Central Garden & Pet Company (CENT) : Free Stock Analysis Report
G-III Apparel Group, LTD. (GIII) : Free Stock Analysis Report
