Investors interested in Industrial Products stocks should always be looking to find the best-performing companies in the group. Kennametal (KMT) 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 Industrial Products sector should help us answer this question.
Kennametal is a member of the Industrial Products sector. This group includes 181 individual stocks and currently holds a Zacks Sector Rank of #9. 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. Kennametal is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #1 (Strong Buy).
Over the past 90 days, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for KMT's full-year earnings has moved 29.3% higher. This means that analyst sentiment is stronger and the stock's earnings outlook is improving.
Based on the most recent data, KMT has returned 17.1% so far this year. At the same time, Industrial Products stocks have gained an average of 13.1%. As we can see, Kennametal is performing better than its sector in the calendar year.
Another stock in the Industrial Products sector, NN Inc. (NNBR), has outperformed the sector so far this year. The stock's year-to-date return is 14.8%.
For NN Inc., the consensus EPS estimate for the current year has increased 21.7% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).
Breaking things down more, Kennametal is a member of the Manufacturing - Tools & Related Products industry, which includes 8 individual companies and currently sits at #21 in the Zacks Industry Rank. On average, stocks in this group have gained 15.1% this year, meaning that KMT is performing better in terms of year-to-date returns.
NN Inc., however, belongs to the Metal Products - Procurement and Fabrication industry. Currently, this 6-stock industry is ranked #63. The industry has moved +42.9% so far this year.
Kennametal and NN Inc. could continue their solid performance, so investors interested in Industrial Products stocks should continue to pay close attention to these stocks.
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Kennametal Inc. (KMT): Free Stock Analysis Report NN, Inc. (NNBR): Free Stock Analysis ReportThis article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).
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