Investors interested in Medical stocks should always be looking to find the best-performing companies in the group. Agilon Health (AGL) 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 Medical peers, we might be able to answer that question.
Agilon Health is a member of our Medical group, which includes 916 different companies and currently sits at #7 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 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. Agilon Health is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).
Over the past three months, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for AGL's full-year earnings has moved 17.2% higher. This means that analyst sentiment is stronger and the stock's earnings outlook is improving.
Based on the latest available data, AGL has gained about 424.4% so far this year. Meanwhile, stocks in the Medical group have gained about 6.3% on average. This shows that Agilon Health is outperforming its peers so far this year.
One other Medical stock that has outperformed the sector so far this year is Arcturus Therapeutics (ARCT). The stock is up 75% year-to-date.
Over the past three months, Arcturus Therapeutics' consensus EPS estimate for the current year has increased 12.8%. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).
Breaking things down more, Agilon Health is a member of the Medical Services industry, which includes 70 individual companies and currently sits at #154 in the Zacks Industry Rank. On average, this group has gained an average of 9.7% so far this year, meaning that AGL is performing better in terms of year-to-date returns.
Arcturus Therapeutics, however, belongs to the Medical - Biomedical and Genetics industry. Currently, this 449-stock industry is ranked #103. The industry has moved +5.9% so far this year.
Going forward, investors interested in Medical stocks should continue to pay close attention to Agilon Health and Arcturus Therapeutics as they could maintain their solid performance.
Zacks' Research Chief Names "Stock Most Likely to Double"
Our team of experts has just released the 5 stocks with the greatest probability of gaining +100% or more in the coming months. Of those 5, Director of Research Sheraz Mian highlights the one stock set to climb highest.
This innovative software-as-a-service firm upped its user base +22% year over year. That rate is increasing and margins are expanding as AI efficiencies take effect. Of course, all our elite picks aren't winners, but this one could far surpass earlier Zacks' Stocks Set to Double like D-Wave Quantum, which shot up +680.1%.
Free: See Our Top Stock And 4 Runners UpWant 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
Agilon Health, Inc. (AGL): Free Stock Analysis Report
Arcturus Therapeutics Holdings Inc. (ARCT): Free Stock Analysis Report
This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).