Are Utilities Stocks Lagging American Water Works (AWK) This Year?
The Utilities group has plenty of great stocks, but investors should always be looking for companies that are outperforming their peers. American Water Works (AWK) 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? By taking a look at the stock's year-to-date performance in comparison to its Utilities peers, we might be able to answer that question.
American Water Works is a member of our Utilities group, which includes 104 different companies and currently sits at #2 in the Zacks Sector Rank. 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 proven model that highlights a variety of stocks with the right characteristics to outperform the market over the next one to three months. The system emphasizes earnings estimate revisions and favors companies with improving earnings outlooks. American Water Works is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for AWK's full-year earnings has moved 0.8% higher within the past quarter. This shows that analyst sentiment has improved and the company's earnings outlook is stronger.
Based on the most recent data, AWK has returned 1.2% so far this year. Meanwhile, stocks in the Utilities group have lost about 3.8% on average. As we can see, American Water Works is performing better than its sector in the calendar year.
Consolidated Edison (ED) is another Utilities stock that has outperformed the sector so far this year. Since the beginning of the year, the stock has returned 1.6%.
For Consolidated Edison, the consensus EPS estimate for the current year has increased 0.6% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).
Breaking things down more, American Water Works is a member of the Utility - Water Supply industry, which includes 13 individual companies and currently sits at #17 in the Zacks Industry Rank. Stocks in this group have lost about 3.1% so far this year, so AWK is performing better this group in terms of year-to-date returns.
Consolidated Edison, however, belongs to the Utility - Electric Power industry. Currently, this 58-stock industry is ranked #72. The industry has moved -6.5% so far this year.
Going forward, investors interested in Utilities stocks should continue to pay close attention to American Water Works and Consolidated Edison as they could maintain their solid performance.
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American Water Works Company, Inc. (AWK) : Free Stock Analysis Report
Consolidated Edison Inc (ED) : Free Stock Analysis Report
