For those looking to find strong Medical stocks, it is prudent to search for companies in the group that are outperforming their peers. Agenus (AGEN) 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 Medical peers, we might be able to answer that question.
Agenus is one of 986 individual stocks in the Medical sector. Collectively, these companies sit at #6 in 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 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. Agenus is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).
Over the past 90 days, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for AGEN's full-year earnings has moved 124.2% higher. This means that analyst sentiment is stronger and the stock's earnings outlook is improving.
Based on the most recent data, AGEN has returned 157.7% so far this year. Meanwhile, stocks in the Medical group have lost about 3.7% on average. This means that Agenus is outperforming the sector as a whole this year.
CVS Health (CVS) is another Medical stock that has outperformed the sector so far this year. Since the beginning of the year, the stock has returned 44.3%.
In CVS Health's case, the consensus EPS estimate for the current year increased 4.1% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).
Looking more specifically, Agenus belongs to the Medical - Biomedical and Genetics industry, a group that includes 494 individual stocks and currently sits at #74 in the Zacks Industry Rank. On average, stocks in this group have lost 0.7% this year, meaning that AGEN is performing better in terms of year-to-date returns.
On the other hand, CVS Health belongs to the Medical Services industry. This 58-stock industry is currently ranked #78. The industry has moved -3.2% year to date.
Investors interested in the Medical sector may want to keep a close eye on Agenus and CVS Health as they attempt to continue their solid performance.
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Agenus Inc. (AGEN): Free Stock Analysis Report CVS Health Corporation (CVS): Free Stock Analysis ReportThis article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).
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