The Utilities group has plenty of great stocks, but investors should always be looking for companies that are outperforming their peers. Has Energias de Portugal (EDPFY) been one of those stocks this year? A quick glance at the company's year-to-date performance in comparison to the rest of the Utilities sector should help us answer this question.
Energias de Portugal is one of 110 individual stocks in the Utilities sector. Collectively, these companies sit at #8 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 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. Energias de Portugal is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).
Within the past quarter, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for EDPFY's full-year earnings has moved 0.3% higher. This shows that analyst sentiment has improved and the company's earnings outlook is stronger.
Based on the most recent data, EDPFY has returned 12.3% so far this year. Meanwhile, stocks in the Utilities group have gained about 5.9% on average. This means that Energias de Portugal is performing better than its sector in terms of year-to-date returns.
MYR Group (MYRG) is another Utilities stock that has outperformed the sector so far this year. Since the beginning of the year, the stock has returned 119.2%.
For MYR Group, the consensus EPS estimate for the current year has increased 27.3% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy).
Looking more specifically, Energias de Portugal belongs to the Utility - Electric Power industry, a group that includes 60 individual stocks and currently sits at #144 in the Zacks Industry Rank. On average, stocks in this group have gained 6% this year, meaning that EDPFY is performing better in terms of year-to-date returns.
In contrast, MYR Group falls under the Electric Construction industry. Currently, this industry has 2 stocks and is ranked #8. Since the beginning of the year, the industry has moved -60.6%.
Energias de Portugal and MYR Group could continue their solid performance, so investors interested in Utilities stocks should continue to pay close attention to these stocks.
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Energias de Portugal (EDPFY): Free Stock Analysis Report
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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).