The Consumer Staples group has plenty of great stocks, but investors should always be looking for companies that are outperforming their peers. Coca-Cola (KO) 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? One simple way to answer this question is to take a look at the year-to-date performance of KO and the rest of the Consumer Staples group's stocks.
Coca-Cola is one of 177 individual stocks in the Consumer Staples sector. Collectively, these companies sit at #9 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 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. KO is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).
Within the past quarter, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for KO's full-year earnings has moved 0.33% higher. This signals that analyst sentiment is improving and the stock's earnings outlook is more positive.
Based on the latest available data, KO has gained about 5.84% so far this year. Meanwhile, stocks in the Consumer Staples group have lost about 0.91% on average. This means that Coca-Cola is performing better than its sector in terms of year-to-date returns.
Breaking things down more, KO is a member of the Beverages - Soft drinks industry, which includes 19 individual companies and currently sits at #90 in the Zacks Industry Rank. On average, this group has gained an average of 3.62% so far this year, meaning that KO is performing better in terms of year-to-date returns.
KO will likely be looking to continue its solid performance, so investors interested in Consumer Staples stocks should continue to pay close attention to the company.
Coca-Cola Company (The) (NYSE:KO
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