Investors interested in Consumer Discretionary stocks should always be looking to find the best-performing companies in the group. Has Acme United Corporation. (ACU) 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 Consumer Discretionary sector should help us answer this question.
Acme United Corporation. is one of 259 companies in the Consumer Discretionary group. The Consumer Discretionary group currently sits at #9 within 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. Acme United Corporation. is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #1 (Strong Buy).
Over the past three months, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for ACU's full-year earnings has moved 17.1% higher. This shows that analyst sentiment has improved and the company's earnings outlook is stronger.
Based on the most recent data, ACU has returned 55.6% so far this year. Meanwhile, stocks in the Consumer Discretionary group have lost about 7.5% on average. This means that Acme United Corporation. is outperforming the sector as a whole this year.
ASICS Corporation Unsponsored ADR (ASCCY) is another Consumer Discretionary stock that has outperformed the sector so far this year. Since the beginning of the year, the stock has returned 16.9%.
In ASICS Corporation Unsponsored ADR's case, the consensus EPS estimate for the current year increased 1.8% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).
Looking more specifically, Acme United Corporation. belongs to the Consumer Products - Discretionary industry, a group that includes 28 individual stocks and currently sits at #156 in the Zacks Industry Rank. On average, this group has gained an average of 15% so far this year, meaning that ACU is performing better in terms of year-to-date returns.
In contrast, ASICS Corporation Unsponsored ADR falls under the Leisure and Recreation Products industry. Currently, this industry has 24 stocks and is ranked #100. Since the beginning of the year, the industry has moved -24.9%.
Investors with an interest in Consumer Discretionary stocks should continue to track Acme United Corporation. and ASICS Corporation Unsponsored ADR. These stocks will be looking to continue their solid performance.
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Acme United Corporation. (ACU): Free Stock Analysis Report
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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).