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Is MDU Resources Group (MDU) Stock Outpacing Its Utilities Peers This Year?

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

MDU Resources is a member of our Utilities group, which includes 104 different companies and currently sits at #14 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 successful stock-picking model that emphasizes earnings estimates and estimate revisions. The system highlights a number of different stocks that could be poised to outperform the broader market over the next one to three months. MDU Resources is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).

Over the past 90 days, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for MDU's full-year earnings has moved 1.4% higher. This signals that analyst sentiment is improving and the stock's earnings outlook is more positive.

According to our latest data, MDU has moved about 10.3% on a year-to-date basis. Meanwhile, stocks in the Utilities group have lost about 2.1% on average. This shows that MDU Resources is outperforming its peers so far this year.

Another stock in the Utilities sector, NiSource (NI - Free Report) , has outperformed the sector so far this year. The stock's year-to-date return is 0.2%.

For NiSource, 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, MDU Resources belongs to the Utility - Gas Distribution industry, which includes 14 individual stocks and currently sits at #229 in the Zacks Industry Rank. This group has lost an average of 2.5% so far this year, so MDU is performing better in this area.

NiSource, however, belongs to the Utility - Electric Power industry. Currently, this 58-stock industry is ranked #168. The industry has moved -1.9% so far this year.

Investors interested in the Utilities sector may want to keep a close eye on MDU Resources and NiSource as they attempt to continue their solid performance.


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