Investors interested in Oils-Energy stocks should always be looking to find the best-performing companies in the group. Is Canadian Natural Resources (CNQ) one of those stocks right now? A quick glance at the company's year-to-date performance in comparison to the rest of the Oils-Energy sector should help us answer this question.
Canadian Natural Resources is one of 238 individual stocks in the Oils-Energy sector. Collectively, these companies sit at #3 in 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 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. Canadian Natural Resources is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).
Over the past 90 days, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for CNQ's full-year earnings has moved 121.6% higher. This signals that analyst sentiment is improving and the stock's earnings outlook is more positive.
Based on the most recent data, CNQ has returned 35% so far this year. At the same time, Oils-Energy stocks have gained an average of 25.3%. As we can see, Canadian Natural Resources is performing better than its sector in the calendar year.
Another Oils-Energy stock, which has outperformed the sector so far this year, is Enerflex (EFXT). The stock has returned 56.5% year-to-date.
Over the past three months, Enerflex's consensus EPS estimate for the current year has increased 18.1%. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).
Looking more specifically, Canadian Natural Resources belongs to the Oil and Gas - Exploration and Production - Canadian industry, which includes 8 individual stocks and currently sits at #48 in the Zacks Industry Rank. This group has gained an average of 38.6% so far this year, so CNQ is slightly underperforming its industry in this area.
In contrast, Enerflex falls under the Alternative Energy - Other industry. Currently, this industry has 50 stocks and is ranked #99. Since the beginning of the year, the industry has moved +13.6%.
Investors interested in the Oils-Energy sector may want to keep a close eye on Canadian Natural Resources and Enerflex as they attempt to continue their solid performance.
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Canadian Natural Resources Limited (CNQ): Free Stock Analysis Report
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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).