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Is Alcon (ALC) Stock Outpacing Its Medical Peers 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. Has Alcon (ALC - Free Report) been one of those stocks this year? Let's take a closer look at the stock's year-to-date performance to find out.

Alcon is one of 1093 companies in the Medical group. The Medical group currently sits at #5 within the Zacks Sector Rank. The Zacks Sector Rank considers 16 different sector groups. The average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks within the groups is measured, and the sectors are listed from best to worst.

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

Over the past 90 days, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for ALC's full-year earnings has moved 4.3% higher. This signals that analyst sentiment is improving and the stock's earnings outlook is more positive.

Based on the latest available data, ALC has gained about 11.8% so far this year. In comparison, Medical companies have returned an average of -7%. As we can see, Alcon is performing better than its sector in the calendar year.

Another stock in the Medical sector, Cardinal Health (CAH - Free Report) , has outperformed the sector so far this year. The stock's year-to-date return is 19.2%.

For Cardinal Health, the consensus EPS estimate for the current year has increased 0.7% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).

Looking more specifically, Alcon belongs to the Medical - Instruments industry, a group that includes 94 individual stocks and currently sits at #97 in the Zacks Industry Rank. Stocks in this group have lost about 9.9% so far this year, so ALC is performing better this group in terms of year-to-date returns.

On the other hand, Cardinal Health belongs to the Medical - Dental Supplies industry. This 16-stock industry is currently ranked #42. The industry has moved +15% year to date.

Going forward, investors interested in Medical stocks should continue to pay close attention to Alcon and Cardinal Health as they could maintain their solid performance.


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