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Is Hershey (HSY) Stock Outpacing Its Consumer Staples Peers This Year?

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The Consumer Staples group has plenty of great stocks, but investors should always be looking for companies that are outperforming their peers. Is Hershey (HSY - Free Report) one of those stocks right now? By taking a look at the stock's year-to-date performance in comparison to its Consumer Staples peers, we might be able to answer that question.

Hershey is a member of our Consumer Staples group, which includes 199 different companies and currently sits at #12 in the Zacks Sector Rank. The Zacks Sector Rank includes 16 different groups and is listed in order from best to worst in terms of the average Zacks Rank of the individual companies within each of these sectors.

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. Hershey is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for HSY's full-year earnings has moved 1.9% higher within the past quarter. This means that analyst sentiment is stronger and the stock's earnings outlook is improving.

Based on the most recent data, HSY has returned 16.7% so far this year. In comparison, Consumer Staples companies have returned an average of -2.3%. As we can see, Hershey is performing better than its sector in the calendar year.

Industrias Bachoco (IBA - Free Report) is another Consumer Staples stock that has outperformed the sector so far this year. Since the beginning of the year, the stock has returned 11.9%.

The consensus estimate for Industrias Bachoco's current year EPS has increased 32.1% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy).

To break things down more, Hershey belongs to the Food - Confectionery industry, a group that includes 3 individual companies and currently sits at #45 in the Zacks Industry Rank. On average, this group has gained an average of 12.5% so far this year, meaning that HSY is performing better in terms of year-to-date returns.

Industrias Bachoco, however, belongs to the Food - Meat Products industry. Currently, this 5-stock industry is ranked #28. The industry has moved -6.1% so far this year.

Hershey and Industrias Bachoco could continue their solid performance, so investors interested in Consumer Staples stocks should continue to pay close attention to these stocks.


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