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Are Consumer Staples Stocks Lagging Archer Daniels Midland (ADM) This Year?

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For those looking to find strong Consumer Staples stocks, it is prudent to search for companies in the group that are outperforming their peers. Archer Daniels Midland (ADM - 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.

Archer Daniels Midland is a member of the Consumer Staples sector. This group includes 185 individual stocks and currently holds a Zacks Sector Rank of #16. The Zacks Sector Rank considers 16 different groups, measuring the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks within the sector to gauge the strength of each group.

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. Archer Daniels Midland is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for ADM's full-year earnings has moved 9.2% higher within the past quarter. This signals that analyst sentiment is improving and the stock's earnings outlook is more positive.

According to our latest data, ADM has moved about 49.4% on a year-to-date basis. Meanwhile, the Consumer Staples sector has returned an average of 9.3% on a year-to-date basis. This means that Archer Daniels Midland is performing better than its sector in terms of year-to-date returns.

Another Consumer Staples stock, which has outperformed the sector so far this year, is Fomento Economico (FMX - Free Report) . The stock has returned 27.7% year-to-date.

The consensus estimate for Fomento Economico's current year EPS has increased 35.8% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy).

Looking more specifically, Archer Daniels Midland belongs to the Agriculture - Operations industry, which includes 11 individual stocks and currently sits at #83 in the Zacks Industry Rank. Stocks in this group have gained about 30.5% so far this year, so ADM is performing better this group in terms of year-to-date returns.

On the other hand, Fomento Economico belongs to the Beverages - Soft drinks industry. This 20-stock industry is currently ranked #78. The industry has moved +11.3% year to date.

Going forward, investors interested in Consumer Staples stocks should continue to pay close attention to Archer Daniels Midland and Fomento Economico as they could maintain their solid performance.

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