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Are Medical Stocks Lagging HealthEquity (HQY) This Year?

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For those looking to find strong Medical stocks, it is prudent to search for companies in the group that are outperforming their peers. Is HealthEquity (HQY - Free Report) one of those stocks right now? A quick glance at the company's year-to-date performance in comparison to the rest of the Medical sector should help us answer this question.

HealthEquity is a member of the Medical sector. This group includes 1119 individual stocks and currently holds a Zacks Sector Rank of #7. 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 emphasizes earnings estimates and estimate revisions to find stocks with improving earnings outlooks. This system has a long record of success, and these stocks tend to be on track to beat the market over the next one to three months. HealthEquity is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).

Over the past three months, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for HQY's full-year earnings has moved 17.4% higher. This signals that analyst sentiment is improving and the stock's earnings outlook is more positive.

According to our latest data, HQY has moved about 4% on a year-to-date basis. Meanwhile, stocks in the Medical group have lost about 2.2% on average. This shows that HealthEquity is outperforming its peers so far this year.

Another Medical stock, which has outperformed the sector so far this year, is McKesson (MCK - Free Report) . The stock has returned 9.5% year-to-date.

The consensus estimate for McKesson's current year EPS has increased 0.8% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).

To break things down more, HealthEquity belongs to the Medical Services industry, a group that includes 67 individual companies and currently sits at #126 in the Zacks Industry Rank. On average, stocks in this group have lost 6.2% this year, meaning that HQY is performing better in terms of year-to-date returns.

McKesson, however, belongs to the Medical - Dental Supplies industry. Currently, this 17-stock industry is ranked #24. The industry has moved +16% so far this year.

Investors interested in the Medical sector may want to keep a close eye on HealthEquity and McKesson as they attempt to continue their solid performance.


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