The Consumer Staples group has plenty of great stocks, but investors should always be looking for companies that are outperforming their peers. Ambev (ABEV) is a stock that can certainly grab the attention of many investors, but do its recent returns compare favorably to the sector as a whole? A quick glance at the company's year-to-date performance in comparison to the rest of the Consumer Staples sector should help us answer this question.
Ambev is a member of our Consumer Staples group, which includes 173 different companies and currently sits at #15 in 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 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. Ambev is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).
Over the past three months, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for ABEV's full-year earnings has moved 5.6% higher. This means that analyst sentiment is stronger and the stock's earnings outlook is improving.
Based on the latest available data, ABEV has gained about 17.4% so far this year. Meanwhile, stocks in the Consumer Staples group have gained about 5.6% on average. This means that Ambev is performing better than its sector in terms of year-to-date returns.
Another Consumer Staples stock, which has outperformed the sector so far this year, is Chefs' Warehouse (CHEF). The stock has returned 26.5% year-to-date.
For Chefs' Warehouse, the consensus EPS estimate for the current year has increased 7% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy).
Looking more specifically, Ambev belongs to the Beverages - Alcohol industry, a group that includes 14 individual stocks and currently sits at #197 in the Zacks Industry Rank. On average, stocks in this group have gained 9.8% this year, meaning that ABEV is performing better in terms of year-to-date returns.
Chefs' Warehouse, however, belongs to the Food - Miscellaneous industry. Currently, this 41-stock industry is ranked #205. The industry has moved -2.5% so far this year.
Going forward, investors interested in Consumer Staples stocks should continue to pay close attention to Ambev and Chefs' Warehouse as they could maintain their solid performance.
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Free: See Our Top Stock And 4 Runners UpAmbev S.A. (ABEV) : Free Stock Analysis Report
The Chefs' Warehouse, Inc. (CHEF) : Free Stock Analysis Report
This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).
The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.
