The Industrial Products group has plenty of great stocks, but investors should always be looking for companies that are outperforming their peers. 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 179 individual stocks and currently holds a Zacks Sector Rank of #7. 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. 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 56.8% higher. This means that analyst sentiment is stronger and the stock's earnings outlook is improving.
According to our latest data, KMT has moved about 41.2% on a year-to-date basis. In comparison, Industrial Products companies have returned an average of 19.7%. This means that Kennametal is outperforming the sector as a whole this year.
Another Industrial Products stock, which has outperformed the sector so far this year, is Nordson (NDSN). The stock has returned 22.6% year-to-date.
Over the past three months, Nordson's consensus EPS estimate for the current year has increased 3.8%. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).
Looking more specifically, Kennametal belongs to the Manufacturing - Tools & Related Products industry, which includes 8 individual stocks and currently sits at #92 in the Zacks Industry Rank. Stocks in this group have gained about 17% so far this year, so KMT is performing better this group in terms of year-to-date returns.
On the other hand, Nordson belongs to the Manufacturing - General Industrial industry. This 43-stock industry is currently ranked #65. The industry has moved +17.2% year to date.
Going forward, investors interested in Industrial Products stocks should continue to pay close attention to Kennametal and Nordson as they could maintain their solid performance.
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Kennametal Inc. (KMT): Free Stock Analysis Report Nordson Corporation (NDSN): Free Stock Analysis ReportThis article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).
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