Investors interested in Retail-Wholesale stocks should always be looking to find the best-performing companies in the group. Dollar General (DG) 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 Retail-Wholesale sector should help us answer this question.
Dollar General is a member of our Retail-Wholesale group, which includes 195 different companies and currently sits at #12 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 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. Dollar General is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).
Over the past three months, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for DG's full-year earnings has moved 6.3% higher. This signals that analyst sentiment is improving and the stock's earnings outlook is more positive.
Our latest available data shows that DG has returned about 31.6% since the start of the calendar year. Meanwhile, stocks in the Retail-Wholesale group have gained about 8.8% on average. This shows that Dollar General is outperforming its peers so far this year.
One other Retail-Wholesale stock that has outperformed the sector so far this year is Ulta Beauty (ULTA). The stock is up 18.8% year-to-date.
The consensus estimate for Ulta Beauty's current year EPS has increased 3.8% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).
Looking more specifically, Dollar General belongs to the Retail - Discount Stores industry, a group that includes 8 individual stocks and currently sits at #100 in the Zacks Industry Rank. On average, this group has gained an average of 4.6% so far this year, meaning that DG is performing better in terms of year-to-date returns.
Ulta Beauty, however, belongs to the Retail - Miscellaneous industry. Currently, this 15-stock industry is ranked #70. The industry has moved +0% so far this year.
Investors with an interest in Retail-Wholesale stocks should continue to track Dollar General and Ulta Beauty. These stocks will be looking to continue their solid performance.
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Dollar General Corporation (DG): Free Stock Analysis Report Ulta Beauty Inc. (ULTA): Free Stock Analysis ReportThis article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).
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