The Medical group has plenty of great stocks, but investors should always be looking for companies that are outperforming their peers. Boston Scientific (BSX) 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.
Boston Scientific is one of 956 individual stocks in the Medical sector. Collectively, these companies sit at #3 in the Zacks Sector Rank. 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 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. Boston Scientific is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).
Over the past 90 days, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for BSX's full-year earnings has moved 2.1% higher. This shows that analyst sentiment has improved and the company's earnings outlook is stronger.
Based on the most recent data, BSX has returned 11.1% so far this year. Meanwhile, the Medical sector has returned an average of 0.7% on a year-to-date basis. This shows that Boston Scientific is outperforming its peers so far this year.
Another Medical stock, which has outperformed the sector so far this year, is Amarin (AMRN). The stock has returned 102.5% year-to-date.
For Amarin, the consensus EPS estimate for the current year has increased 101.7% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).
To break things down more, Boston Scientific belongs to the Medical - Products industry, a group that includes 84 individual companies and currently sits at #90 in the Zacks Industry Rank. Stocks in this group have gained about 4.4% so far this year, so BSX is performing better this group in terms of year-to-date returns.
On the other hand, Amarin belongs to the Medical - Biomedical and Genetics industry. This 470-stock industry is currently ranked #78. The industry has moved +9.7% year to date.
Going forward, investors interested in Medical stocks should continue to pay close attention to Boston Scientific and Amarin as they could maintain their solid performance.
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Boston Scientific Corporation (BSX): Free Stock Analysis Report Amarin Corporation PLC (AMRN): Free Stock Analysis ReportThis article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).
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