Are Utilities Stocks Lagging CenterPoint Energy (CNP) This Year?

For those looking to find strong Utilities stocks, it is prudent to search for companies in the group that are outperforming their peers. Has CenterPoint Energy (CNP) been one of those stocks this year? Let's take a closer look at the stock's year-to-date performance to find out.

CenterPoint Energy is one of 106 individual stocks in the Utilities sector. Collectively, these companies sit at #2 in the Zacks Sector Rank. The Zacks Sector Rank includes 16 different groups and is listed in order from best to worst in terms of the average Zacks Rank of the individual companies within each of these sectors.

The Zacks Rank emphasizes earnings estimates and estimate revisions to find stocks with improving earnings outlooks. This system has a long record of success, and these stocks tend to be on track to beat the market over the next one to three months. CenterPoint Energy is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).

Over the past three months, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for CNP's full-year earnings has moved 0.2% higher. This shows that analyst sentiment has improved and the company's earnings outlook is stronger.

Based on the latest available data, CNP has gained about 12.1% so far this year. In comparison, Utilities companies have returned an average of 6.4%. This means that CenterPoint Energy is outperforming the sector as a whole this year.

Another Utilities stock, which has outperformed the sector so far this year, is Energias de Portugal (EDPFY). The stock has returned 29.8% year-to-date.

In Energias de Portugal's case, the consensus EPS estimate for the current year increased 9.1% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy).

Looking more specifically, CenterPoint Energy belongs to the Utility - Electric Power industry, a group that includes 60 individual stocks and currently sits at #70 in the Zacks Industry Rank. On average, this group has gained an average of 6.3% so far this year, meaning that CNP is performing better in terms of year-to-date returns. Energias de Portugal is also part of the same industry.

Going forward, investors interested in Utilities stocks should continue to pay close attention to CenterPoint Energy and Energias de Portugal as they could maintain their solid performance.

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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).

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