“There’s always a bull market somewhere.”

Regardless of how volatile markets are at any given time, there are always stocks that are outperforming the broader market. The systems and strategies we use here at Zacks consistently find those winning stocks irrespective of the market’s general direction.

Stocks continued their uptrend in 2021, but the major indices have swiftly reversed course this year as a host of concerns ranging from rampant inflation to a foreign war have sent asset prices lower. While many individual stocks trended well last year, this year has been much more difficult to navigate as most stocks are now in sustained downtrends.

Attempting to profit by investing in a stock that is trending downward is very difficult as it requires investors to correctly predict when the price will ‘bottom out’ and resume a price uptrend. On the same note, buying a stock because it is ‘cheap’ is similar in terms of trying to predict its future price movement.

It can be nearly impossible to forecast when a stock will bottom out with any reasonable degree of accuracy on a regular basis. This speaks to the old market adage of catching a falling knife – it’s better to wait for it to drop than stick your hand out and attempt to catch a falling dagger. A much more prudent approach involves remaining patient until the stock shows signs of strength and resumes an uptrend.

One of the ways we can determine which stocks are outperforming is to identify leading sectors and industry groups. The Zacks Rubber – Plastics industry is currently ranked in the top 13% out of approximately 250 industries. Because it is ranked in the top half of all Zacks Ranked Industries, we expect this group to outperform the market over the next 3 to 6 months.

This industry group is part of the Zacks Industrial Products sector, which ranks in the top 38% out of 16 sectors. Also note the favorable characteristics for this sector below:

Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

Let’s take a look at a leading stock within this powerful industry and sector combination.

Myers Industries, Inc. (MYE Quick QuoteMYE - Free Report)

Myers Industries is a global manufacturer of polymer products for the agricultural, automotive, and industrial commercial and consumer markets. MYE is also the largest wholesale distributor of tools and supplies for the tire service industry. The company offers tire repair materials and custom rubber products, along with providing equipment for undervehicle service for heavy trucks and off-road vehicles. Myers Industries was founded in 1933 and is headquartered in Akron, OH.

A Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), MYE has surpassed earnings estimates in 2 of the past 4 quarters. The company most recently reported Q1 EPS back in March of $4.26 per share, a 67.72% surprise over the $2.54 consensus estimate. MYE has delivered a trailing four-quarter average earnings surprise of 20.11%. The stock is up nearly 27% this year alone.