For those looking to find strong Medical stocks, it is prudent to search for companies in the group that are outperforming their peers. Is Astellas Pharma Inc. (ALPMY) one of those stocks right now? A quick glance at the company's year-to-date performance in comparison to the rest of the Medical sector should help us answer this question.
Astellas Pharma Inc. is a member of the Medical sector. This group includes 888 individual stocks and currently holds a Zacks Sector Rank of #7. 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 emphasizes earnings estimates and estimate revisions to find stocks with improving earnings outlooks. This system has a long record of success, and these stocks tend to be on track to beat the market over the next one to three months. Astellas Pharma Inc. is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #1 (Strong Buy).
Over the past 90 days, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for ALPMY's full-year earnings has moved 19.6% higher. This means that analyst sentiment is stronger and the stock's earnings outlook is improving.
Our latest available data shows that ALPMY has returned about 1.9% since the start of the calendar year. Meanwhile, stocks in the Medical group have lost about 4.5% on average. This means that Astellas Pharma Inc. is outperforming the sector as a whole this year.
Another Medical stock, which has outperformed the sector so far this year, is Aurinia Pharmaceuticals (AUPH). The stock has returned 2.6% year-to-date.
Over the past three months, Aurinia Pharmaceuticals' consensus EPS estimate for the current year has increased 0.6%. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).
Breaking things down more, Astellas Pharma Inc. is a member of the Medical - Drugs industry, which includes 135 individual companies and currently sits at #108 in the Zacks Industry Rank. On average, this group has lost an average of 8.5% so far this year, meaning that ALPMY is performing better in terms of year-to-date returns. Aurinia Pharmaceuticals is also part of the same industry.
Investors interested in the Medical sector may want to keep a close eye on Astellas Pharma Inc. and Aurinia Pharmaceuticals as they attempt to continue their solid performance.
Radical New Technology Could Hand Investors Huge Gains
Quantum Computing is the next technological revolution, and it could be even more advanced than AI.
While some believed the technology was years away, it is already present and moving fast. Large hyperscalers, such as Microsoft, Google, Amazon, Oracle, and even Meta and Tesla, are scrambling to integrate quantum computing into their infrastructure.
Senior Stock Strategist Kevin Cook reveals 7 carefully selected stocks poised to dominate the quantum computing landscape in his report, Beyond AI: The Quantum Leap in Computing Power .
Kevin was among the early experts who recognized NVIDIA's enormous potential back in 2016. Now, he has keyed in on what could be "the next big thing" in quantum computing supremacy. Today, you have a rare chance to position your portfolio at the forefront of this opportunity.
See Top Quantum Stocks Now >>Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report
Astellas Pharma Inc. (ALPMY): Free Stock Analysis Report
Aurinia Pharmaceuticals Inc (AUPH): Free Stock Analysis Report
This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).