Yahoo Finance Is Atmos Energy (ATO) Stock Outpacing Its Utilities Peers This Year?
The Utilities group has plenty of great stocks, but investors should always be looking for companies that are outperforming their peers. Atmos Energy (ATO) 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? Let's take a closer look at the stock's year-to-date performance to find out.
Atmos Energy is a member of our Utilities group, which includes 103 different companies and currently sits 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 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. Atmos Energy is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).
Over the past three months, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for ATO's full-year earnings has moved 0.2% higher. This means that analyst sentiment is stronger and the stock's earnings outlook is improving.
Based on the latest available data, ATO has gained about 3.6% so far this year. Meanwhile, stocks in the Utilities group have gained about 2.1% on average. This means that Atmos Energy is outperforming the sector as a whole this year.
One other Utilities stock that has outperformed the sector so far this year is Deutsche Telekom AG (DTEGY). The stock is up 23.8% year-to-date.
In Deutsche Telekom AG's case, the consensus EPS estimate for the current year increased 6.2% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy).
Looking more specifically, Atmos Energy belongs to the Utility - Gas Distribution industry, which includes 14 individual stocks and currently sits at #103 in the Zacks Industry Rank. On average, stocks in this group have gained 2.5% this year, meaning that ATO is performing better in terms of year-to-date returns.
Deutsche Telekom AG, however, belongs to the Diversified Communication Services industry. Currently, this 13-stock industry is ranked #53. The industry has moved +13.1% so far this year.
Investors interested in the Utilities sector may want to keep a close eye on Atmos Energy and Deutsche Telekom AG as they attempt to continue their solid performance.
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