For those looking to find strong Medical stocks, it is prudent to search for companies in the group that are outperforming their peers. Is Avantor, Inc. (AVTR) one of those stocks right now? A quick glance at the company's year-to-date performance in comparison to the rest of the Medical sector should help us answer this question.
Avantor, Inc. is one of 916 companies in the Medical group. The Medical group currently sits at #9 within the Zacks Sector Rank. 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. Avantor, Inc. is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).
Over the past 90 days, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for AVTR's full-year earnings has moved 2.9% higher. This shows that analyst sentiment has improved and the company's earnings outlook is stronger.
Based on the latest available data, AVTR has gained about 35.4% so far this year. In comparison, Medical companies have returned an average of 2.1%. As we can see, Avantor, Inc. is performing better than its sector in the calendar year.
Another stock in the Medical sector, BrightSpring Health Services, Inc. (BTSG), has outperformed the sector so far this year. The stock's year-to-date return is 51.6%.
Over the past three months, BrightSpring Health Services, Inc.'s consensus EPS estimate for the current year has increased 7.7%. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).
Looking more specifically, Avantor, Inc. belongs to the Medical Services industry, a group that includes 72 individual stocks and currently sits at #104 in the Zacks Industry Rank. On average, stocks in this group have gained 3% this year, meaning that AVTR is performing better in terms of year-to-date returns. BrightSpring Health Services, Inc. is also part of the same industry.
Avantor, Inc. and BrightSpring Health Services, Inc. could continue their solid performance, so investors interested in Medical stocks should continue to pay close attention to these stocks.
Beyond Nvidia: AI's Second Wave Is Here
The AI revolution has already minted millionaires. But the stocks everyone knows about aren't likely to keep delivering the biggest profits. AI’s second wave is moving from infrastructure to implementation and these companies are at the forefront of this transition, positioned to become what Amazon and Google were to the internet era.
See Stocks Now >>Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report
Avantor, Inc. (AVTR): Free Stock Analysis Report
BrightSpring Health Services, Inc. (BTSG): Free Stock Analysis Report
This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).