Is Applied Materials (AMAT) Stock Outpacing Its Computer and Technology Peers This Year?

AMAT

The Computer and Technology group has plenty of great stocks, but investors should always be looking for companies that are outperforming their peers. Applied Materials (AMAT - Free Report) 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 AMAT and the rest of the Computer and Technology group's stocks.

Applied Materials is one of 630 individual stocks in the Computer and Technology sector. Collectively, these companies sit at #6 in the Zacks Sector Rank. The Zacks Sector Rank considers 16 different sector groups. The average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks within the groups is measured, and the sectors are listed from best to worst.

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. AMAT is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #1 (Strong Buy).

Over the past 90 days, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for AMAT's full-year earnings has moved 14.08% higher. This is a sign of improving analyst sentiment and a positive earnings outlook trend.

According to our latest data, AMAT has moved about 88.79% on a year-to-date basis. In comparison, Computer and Technology companies have returned an average of 34.03%. As we can see, Applied Materials is performing better than its sector in the calendar year.

Looking more specifically, AMAT belongs to the Semiconductor Equipment - Wafer Fabrication industry, which includes 4 individual stocks and currently sits at #2 in the Zacks Industry Rank. On average, stocks in this group have gained 99.15% this year, meaning that AMAT is slightly underperforming its industry in terms of year-to-date returns.

Going forward, investors interested in Computer and Technology stocks should continue to pay close attention to AMAT as it looks to continue its solid performance.

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