For those looking to find strong Consumer Discretionary stocks, it is prudent to search for companies in the group that are outperforming their peers. Is Escalade (ESCA) 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 Discretionary sector should help us answer this question.
Escalade is a member of the Consumer Discretionary sector. This group includes 243 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 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. Escalade is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).
Over the past 90 days, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for ESCA's full-year earnings has moved 13.7% higher. This shows that analyst sentiment has improved and the company's earnings outlook is stronger.
Our latest available data shows that ESCA has returned about 39.1% since the start of the calendar year. At the same time, Consumer Discretionary stocks have lost an average of 8.1%. This means that Escalade is performing better than its sector in terms of year-to-date returns.
Flexsteel Industries (FLXS) is another Consumer Discretionary stock that has outperformed the sector so far this year. Since the beginning of the year, the stock has returned 45.9%.
For Flexsteel Industries, the consensus EPS estimate for the current year has increased 16.9% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy).
Breaking things down more, Escalade is a member of the Leisure and Recreation Products industry, which includes 21 individual companies and currently sits at #107 in the Zacks Industry Rank. This group has lost an average of 1.2% so far this year, so ESCA is performing better in this area.
Flexsteel Industries, however, belongs to the Furniture industry. Currently, this 7-stock industry is ranked #229. The industry has moved -15.4% so far this year.
Going forward, investors interested in Consumer Discretionary stocks should continue to pay close attention to Escalade and Flexsteel Industries as they could maintain their solid performance.
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Escalade, Incorporated (ESCA): Free Stock Analysis Report
Flexsteel Industries, Inc. (FLXS): Free Stock Analysis Report
This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).