For those looking to find strong Consumer Discretionary stocks, it is prudent to search for companies in the group that are outperforming their peers. Electronic Arts (EA) 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? Let's take a closer look at the stock's year-to-date performance to find out.
Electronic Arts is a member of the Consumer Discretionary sector. This group includes 264 individual stocks and currently holds a Zacks Sector Rank of #7. 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 successful stock-picking model that emphasizes earnings estimates and estimate revisions. The system highlights a number of different stocks that could be poised to outperform the broader market over the next one to three months. Electronic Arts is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).
Within the past quarter, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for EA's full-year earnings has moved 0.4% higher. This means that analyst sentiment is stronger and the stock's earnings outlook is improving.
According to our latest data, EA has moved about 37.2% on a year-to-date basis. In comparison, Consumer Discretionary companies have returned an average of 6.9%. This means that Electronic Arts is outperforming the sector as a whole this year.
One other Consumer Discretionary stock that has outperformed the sector so far this year is Hengan International Group Co., Ltd. Unsponsored ADR (HEGIY). The stock is up 20.8% year-to-date.
Over the past three months, Hengan International Group Co., Ltd. Unsponsored ADR's consensus EPS estimate for the current year has increased 3.5%. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).
Breaking things down more, Electronic Arts is a member of the Gaming industry, which includes 40 individual companies and currently sits at #58 in the Zacks Industry Rank. On average, stocks in this group have gained 20.1% this year, meaning that EA is performing better in terms of year-to-date returns.
On the other hand, Hengan International Group Co., Ltd. Unsponsored ADR belongs to the Consumer Products - Discretionary industry. This 25-stock industry is currently ranked #160. The industry has moved -15.2% year to date.
Investors interested in the Consumer Discretionary sector may want to keep a close eye on Electronic Arts and Hengan International Group Co., Ltd. Unsponsored ADR as they attempt to continue their solid performance.
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Electronic Arts Inc. (EA): Free Stock Analysis ReportThis article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).
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