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Is Athersys, Inc. (ATHX) Stock Outpacing Its Medical Peers 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 Athersys, Inc. 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.

Athersys, Inc. is a member of our Medical group, which includes 1161 different companies and currently sits at #12 in the Zacks Sector Rank. The Zacks Sector Rank gauges the strength of our 16 individual sector groups by measuring the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks within the groups.

The Zacks Rank is a successful stock-picking model that emphasizes earnings estimates and estimate revisions. The system highlights a number of different stocks that could be poised to outperform the broader market over the next one to three months. Athersys, Inc. is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).

Over the past 90 days, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for ATHX's full-year earnings has moved 19.6% higher. This means that analyst sentiment is stronger and the stock's earnings outlook is improving.

Based on the most recent data, ATHX has returned 2.8% so far this year. Meanwhile, the Medical sector has returned an average of -11.2% on a year-to-date basis. This shows that Athersys, Inc. is outperforming its peers so far this year.

Another stock in the Medical sector, Gamida Cell , has outperformed the sector so far this year. The stock's year-to-date return is 25.2%.

The consensus estimate for Gamida Cell's current year EPS has increased 26.1% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).

Breaking things down more, Athersys, Inc. is a member of the Medical - Biomedical and Genetics industry, which includes 540 individual companies and currently sits at #146 in the Zacks Industry Rank. On average, this group has lost an average of 17.2% so far this year, meaning that ATHX is performing better in terms of year-to-date returns. Gamida Cell is also part of the same industry.

Going forward, investors interested in Medical stocks should continue to pay close attention to Athersys, Inc. and Gamida Cell as they could maintain their solid performance.

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