For those looking to find strong Consumer Staples stocks, it is prudent to search for companies in the group that are outperforming their peers. Is Medifast (MED) one of those stocks right now? A quick glance at the company's year-to-date performance in comparison to the rest of the Consumer Staples sector should help us answer this question.
Medifast is one of 173 individual stocks in the Consumer Staples sector. Collectively, these companies sit at #12 in 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 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. Medifast is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for MED's full-year earnings has moved 8.4% higher within the past quarter. This is a sign of improving analyst sentiment and a positive earnings outlook trend.
Based on the most recent data, MED has returned 18.9% so far this year. In comparison, Consumer Staples companies have returned an average of 4.7%. This shows that Medifast is outperforming its peers so far this year.
New York Times Co. (NYT) is another Consumer Staples stock that has outperformed the sector so far this year. Since the beginning of the year, the stock has returned 9.8%.
In New York Times Co.'s case, the consensus EPS estimate for the current year increased 5.1% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).
Breaking things down more, Medifast is a member of the Food - Miscellaneous industry, which includes 40 individual companies and currently sits at #197 in the Zacks Industry Rank. This group has lost an average of 6.5% so far this year, so MED is performing better in this area.
On the other hand, New York Times Co. belongs to the Publishing - Newspapers industry. This 1-stock industry is currently ranked #7. The industry has moved +1.8% year to date.
Investors with an interest in Consumer Staples stocks should continue to track Medifast and New York Times Co.. These stocks will be looking to continue their solid performance.
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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).