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Is Abbott Laboratories (ABT) Outperforming Other Medical Stocks This Year?

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Investors interested in Medical stocks should always be looking to find the best-performing companies in the group. Is Abbott Laboratories (ABT - Free Report) one of those stocks right now? By taking a look at the stock's year-to-date performance in comparison to its Medical peers, we might be able to answer that question.

Abbott Laboratories is one of 978 individual stocks in the Medical sector. Collectively, these companies sit at #16 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 system that emphasizes earnings estimates and estimate revisions, highlighting a variety of stocks that are displaying the right characteristics to beat the market over the next one to three months. ABT is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).

Within the past quarter, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for ABT's full-year earnings has moved 15.95% higher. This shows that analyst sentiment has improved and the company's earnings outlook is stronger.

Our latest available data shows that ABT has returned about 9.80% since the start of the calendar year. In comparison, Medical companies have returned an average of 3.52%. This means that Abbott Laboratories is performing better than its sector in terms of year-to-date returns.

Looking more specifically, ABT belongs to the Medical - Products industry, which includes 79 individual stocks and currently sits at #224 in the Zacks Industry Rank. On average, stocks in this group have gained 4.83% this year, meaning that ABT is performing better in terms of year-to-date returns.

Going forward, investors interested in Medical stocks should continue to pay close attention to ABT as it looks to continue its solid performance.


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