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Is AutoZone (AZO) Stock Outpacing Its Retail-Wholesale Peers This Year?

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Investors interested in Retail-Wholesale stocks should always be looking to find the best-performing companies in the group. Is AutoZone (AZO - Free Report) one of those stocks right now? Let's take a closer look at the stock's year-to-date performance to find out.

AutoZone is a member of the Retail-Wholesale sector. This group includes 221 individual stocks and currently holds a Zacks Sector Rank of #4. 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. AutoZone is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for AZO's full-year earnings has moved 5.7% higher within the past quarter. This signals that analyst sentiment is improving and the stock's earnings outlook is more positive.

Based on the latest available data, AZO has gained about 57.3% so far this year. In comparison, Retail-Wholesale companies have returned an average of -3.8%. This means that AutoZone is performing better than its sector in terms of year-to-date returns.

Another stock in the Retail-Wholesale sector, Conn's (CONN - Free Report) , has outperformed the sector so far this year. The stock's year-to-date return is 109.7%.

For Conn's, the consensus EPS estimate for the current year has increased 36.9% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).

To break things down more, AutoZone belongs to the Automotive - Retail and Wholesale - Parts industry, a group that includes 4 individual companies and currently sits at #78 in the Zacks Industry Rank. Stocks in this group have gained about 48.2% so far this year, so AZO is performing better this group in terms of year-to-date returns.

Conn's, however, belongs to the Retail - Consumer Electronics industry. Currently, this 4-stock industry is ranked #34. The industry has moved +77.3% so far this year.

Investors with an interest in Retail-Wholesale stocks should continue to track AutoZone and Conn's. These stocks will be looking to continue their solid performance.


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AutoZone, Inc. (AZO) - free report >>

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