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Is Centene (CNC) 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. Is Centene (CNC - Free Report) one of those stocks right now? Let's take a closer look at the stock's year-to-date performance to find out.

Centene is one of 1069 individual stocks in the Medical sector. Collectively, these companies sit at #5 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 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. Centene is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).

Within the past quarter, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for CNC's full-year earnings has moved 0.8% higher. This means that analyst sentiment is stronger and the stock's earnings outlook is improving.

Our latest available data shows that CNC has returned about 6.9% since the start of the calendar year. At the same time, Medical stocks have gained an average of 5.9%. This shows that Centene is outperforming its peers so far this year.

Another stock in the Medical sector, Absci Corporation (ABSI - Free Report) , has outperformed the sector so far this year. The stock's year-to-date return is 14.5%.

Over the past three months, Absci Corporation's consensus EPS estimate for the current year has increased 0.3%. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).

Breaking things down more, Centene is a member of the Medical - HMOs industry, which includes 8 individual companies and currently sits at #217 in the Zacks Industry Rank. On average, this group has gained an average of 0.2% so far this year, meaning that CNC is performing better in terms of year-to-date returns.

Absci Corporation, however, belongs to the Medical - Biomedical and Genetics industry. Currently, this 519-stock industry is ranked #87. The industry has moved +0.3% so far this year.

Investors with an interest in Medical stocks should continue to track Centene and Absci Corporation. These stocks will be looking to continue their solid performance.


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