The U.S. stock market has become more volatile after the Federal Reserve raised interest rates by 25 basis points. The S&P 500 ended lower as rising Treasury yields and persistent inflation concerns pressured sentiment. Even so, consumer spending remains resilient, while economic activity, productivity and capital investment continue to show underlying strength. 

Near-term volatility may persist as investors weigh higher borrowing costs, elevated oil prices and inflation risks. However, the broader setup remains mildly positive because economic growth is still holding up and selected areas of the market continue to show strength.

In this environment, investors may benefit from staying selective. Relative price strength can be a useful strategy for identifying stocks that are outperforming the broader market and showing resilience despite shifting conditions.

At this stage, investors would be wise to consider companies such as Phillips 66 (PSX Quick QuotePSX - Free Report) , Signet Jewelers Limited (SIG Quick QuoteSIG - Free Report) , HP Inc. (HPQ Quick QuoteHPQ - Free Report) , BILL Holdings, Inc. (BILL Quick QuoteBILL - Free Report) and Marathon Petroleum Corporation (MPC Quick QuoteMPC - Free Report) .

Relative Price Strength Strategy

Investors generally gauge a stock’s potential returns by examining earnings growth and valuation multiples. At the same time, it’s essential to measure the performance of such a stock relative to its industry, peers, or an appropriate benchmark.

If you see that a stock is underperforming on fundamental factors, it would be prudent to move on and find a better alternative. However, those outperforming their respective sectors in terms of price should be selected because they stand a better chance of providing considerable returns.

Then again, it is imperative that you determine whether or not an investment has relevant upside potential when considering stocks with significant relative price strength. Stocks delivering better than the S&P 500 for 1 to 3 months, at least, and having solid fundamentals, indicate room for growth and are the best way to go about this strategy.

Finally, it is crucial to find out whether analysts are optimistic about the upcoming earnings of these companies. In order to do this, we have added positive estimate revisions for the current quarter’s (Q1) earnings to our screen. When a stock undergoes an upward revision, it leads to additional price gains.

Screening Parameters

Relative % Price change – 12 weeks greater than 0

Relative % Price change – 4 weeks greater than 0

Relative % Price change – 1 week greater than 0

(We have considered those stocks that have been outperforming the S&P 500 over the last 12 weeks, four weeks and one week.)

% Change (Q1) Est. over 4 Weeks greater than 0:Positive current-quarter estimate revisions over the last four weeks.

Zacks Rank equal to 1: Only Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) stocks — that have returned more than 26% annually over the last 26 years and surpassed the S&P 500 in 23 of the last 26 years — can get through. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

Current Price greater than or equal to $5 and Average 20-day Volume greater than or equal to 50,000: A minimum price of $5 is a good standard to screen low-priced stocks, while a high trading volume would imply adequate liquidity.

VGM Score less than or equal to B:Our research shows that stocks with a VGM Score of A or B, when combined with a Zacks Rank #1 or 2 (Buy), offer the best upside potential.

Here are five of the 17 stocks that made it through the screen:

Phillips 66: It is an integrated energy company spanning refining, midstream, chemicals, marketing, specialty products and renewable fuels. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2026 earnings of Phillips 66 indicates 318.6% growth. PSX has a VGM Score of A.

Over the past 60 days, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for Phillips 66’s 2026 earnings has moved up 42.9%. The company has a market capitalization of $105.7 billion. PSX shares have gone up 101.5% in a year.

Signet Jewelers: Founded in 1950 and headquartered in Hamilton, Bermuda, it is the world's largest retailer of diamond jewelry and a leading specialty jewelry retailer. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for fiscal 2027 earnings of Signet Jewelers indicates 21.9% growth. SIG has a VGM Score of A.

Over the past 60 days, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for Signet Jewelers’ fiscal 2027 earnings has moved up 10.7%. The company has a market capitalization of $3.9 billion. SIG shares have gone up 6.2% in a year.

HP: It is a global provider of personal computing and other access devices, imaging and printing products, and related technologies, solutions and services. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for HP’s fiscal 2026 earnings indicates 3.5% growth. HP has a VGM Score of B.

HP beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate for earnings in each of the last four quarters. It has a trailing four-quarter earnings surprise of roughly 9.4%, on average. HP shares have gained 15.7% in a year.

BILL Holdings:The company primarily serves small and midsize businesses through its AI-powered financial operations platform that connects customers with their suppliers and clients. BILL has a market capitalization of $4.3 billion. It has a VGM Score of B.

Notably, over the past 60 days, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for BILL’s fiscal 2027 earnings has gone up 14.2%. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for fiscal 2027 earnings of BILL indicates 33.2% growth. BILL Holdings shares have lost 6.8% in a year.

Marathon Petroleum: It is a U.S. downstream energy company with a large refining and marketing system spread across the Gulf Coast, Mid-Continent and West Coast. Marathon Petroleum’s expected EPS growth rate for three to five years is currently 53.3%, which compares favorably with the industry's growth rate of 29%. MPC has a VGM Score of A.

Over the past 60 days, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for Marathon Petroleum’s 2026 earnings has moved up 55.4%. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2026 earnings indicates 420.3% growth. MPC shares have gained 123.8% in a year.