Investors interested in Consumer Staples stocks should always be looking to find the best-performing companies in the group. Mondelez (MDLZ) 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 Consumer Staples peers, we might be able to answer that question.
Mondelez is one of 178 companies in the Consumer Staples group. The Consumer Staples group currently sits at #13 within 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 proven system that emphasizes earnings estimates and estimate revisions, highlighting a variety of stocks that are displaying the right characteristics to beat the market over the next one to three months. Mondelez is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).
Over the past 90 days, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for MDLZ's full-year earnings has moved 4.4% higher. This signals that analyst sentiment is improving and the stock's earnings outlook is more positive.
Our latest available data shows that MDLZ has returned about 9.3% since the start of the calendar year. Meanwhile, stocks in the Consumer Staples group have gained about 6.1% on average. As we can see, Mondelez is performing better than its sector in the calendar year.
Another Consumer Staples stock, which has outperformed the sector so far this year, is Nomad Foods (NOMD). The stock has returned 6.7% year-to-date.
In Nomad Foods' case, the consensus EPS estimate for the current year increased 6.2% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy).
Looking more specifically, Mondelez belongs to the Food - Miscellaneous industry, which includes 41 individual stocks and currently sits at #145 in the Zacks Industry Rank. On average, stocks in this group have lost 5.3% this year, meaning that MDLZ is performing better in terms of year-to-date returns. Nomad Foods is also part of the same industry.
Mondelez and Nomad Foods could continue their solid performance, so investors interested in Consumer Staples stocks should continue to pay close attention to these stocks.
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Mondelez International, Inc. (MDLZ): Free Stock Analysis Report Nomad Foods Limited (NOMD): Free Stock Analysis ReportThis article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).
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