The Medical group has plenty of great stocks, but investors should always be looking for companies that are outperforming their peers. Is Aveanna Healthcare (AVAH) one of those stocks right now? Let's take a closer look at the stock's year-to-date performance to find out.
Aveanna Healthcare is a member of the Medical sector. This group includes 885 individual stocks and currently holds a Zacks Sector Rank of #9. 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. Aveanna Healthcare is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for AVAH's full-year earnings has moved 17.5% higher within the past quarter. This means that analyst sentiment is stronger and the stock's earnings outlook is improving.
Based on the latest available data, AVAH has gained about 0.4% so far this year. At the same time, Medical stocks have lost an average of 3.6%. As we can see, Aveanna Healthcare is performing better than its sector in the calendar year.
Align Technology (ALGN) is another Medical stock that has outperformed the sector so far this year. Since the beginning of the year, the stock has returned 7.9%.
In Align Technology's case, the consensus EPS estimate for the current year increased 3.9% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).
Breaking things down more, Aveanna Healthcare is a member of the Medical - Outpatient and Home Healthcare industry, which includes 14 individual companies and currently sits at #56 in the Zacks Industry Rank. Stocks in this group have gained about 9% so far this year, so AVAH is slightly underperforming its industry this group in terms of year-to-date returns.
In contrast, Align Technology falls under the Medical - Dental Supplies industry. Currently, this industry has 13 stocks and is ranked #97. Since the beginning of the year, the industry has moved -5.1%.
Investors with an interest in Medical stocks should continue to track Aveanna Healthcare and Align Technology. These stocks will be looking to continue their solid performance.
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Aveanna Healthcare Holdings Inc. (AVAH): Free Stock Analysis Report
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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).