Investors focused on the Basic Materials space have likely heard of CF Industries Holdings (NYSE:CF), but is the stock performing well in comparison to the rest of its sector peers? A quick glance at the company's year-to-date performance in comparison to the rest of the Basic Materials sector should help us answer this question.
CF Industries Holdings is one of 250 individual stocks in the Basic Materials sector. Collectively, these companies sit at #14 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 proven model that highlights a variety of stocks with the right characteristics to outperform the market over the next one to three months. The system emphasizes earnings estimate revisions and favors companies with improving earnings outlooks. CF is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for CF's full-year earnings has moved 13.32% higher within the past quarter. This is a sign of improving analyst sentiment and a positive earnings outlook trend.
Our latest available data shows that CF has returned about 0.14% since the start of the calendar year. In comparison, Basic Materials companies have returned an average of -18.60%. This means that CF Industries Holdings is outperforming the sector as a whole this year.
Breaking things down more, CF is a member of the Fertilizers industry, which includes 7 individual companies and currently sits at #108 in the Zacks Industry Rank. On average, this group has lost an average of 8.05% so far this year, meaning that CF is performing better in terms of year-to-date returns.
Investors in the Basic Materials sector will want to keep a close eye on CF as it attempts to continue its solid performance.
CF Industries Holdings, Inc. (CF): Free Stock Analysis Report
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