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Are Consumer Staples Stocks Lagging Helen of Troy (HELE) This Year?

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Investors interested in Consumer Staples stocks should always be looking to find the best-performing companies in the group. Helen of Troy (HELE - Free Report) is a stock that can certainly grab the attention of many investors, but do its recent returns compare favorably to the sector as a whole? A quick glance at the company's year-to-date performance in comparison to the rest of the Consumer Staples sector should help us answer this question.

Helen of Troy is a member of the Consumer Staples sector. This group includes 194 individual stocks and currently holds a Zacks Sector Rank of #7. 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 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. Helen of Troy is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).

Over the past three months, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for HELE's full-year earnings has moved 2.9% higher. This is a sign of improving analyst sentiment and a positive earnings outlook trend.

Based on the most recent data, HELE has returned 16.1% so far this year. In comparison, Consumer Staples companies have returned an average of -0.9%. As we can see, Helen of Troy is performing better than its sector in the calendar year.

PepsiCo (PEP - 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 2.1%.

In PepsiCo's case, the consensus EPS estimate for the current year increased 3.6% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).

Looking more specifically, Helen of Troy belongs to the Cosmetics industry, which includes 14 individual stocks and currently sits at #76 in the Zacks Industry Rank. On average, stocks in this group have lost 10.9% this year, meaning that HELE is performing better in terms of year-to-date returns.

PepsiCo, however, belongs to the Beverages - Soft drinks industry. Currently, this 17-stock industry is ranked #97. The industry has moved +5.7% so far this year.

Investors interested in the Consumer Staples sector may want to keep a close eye on Helen of Troy and PepsiCo as they attempt to continue their solid performance.


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