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Is Coca-Cola (KO) Outperforming Other Consumer Staples Stocks This Year?

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Investors interested in Consumer Staples stocks should always be looking to find the best-performing companies in the group. Has Coca-Cola (KO - Free Report) been one of those stocks this year? By taking a look at the stock's year-to-date performance in comparison to its Consumer Staples peers, we might be able to answer that question.

Coca-Cola is a member of our Consumer Staples group, which includes 185 different companies and currently sits at #16 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 proven model that highlights a variety of stocks with the right characteristics to outperform the market over the next one to three months. The system emphasizes earnings estimate revisions and favors companies with improving earnings outlooks. Coca-Cola is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for KO's full-year earnings has moved 0.9% higher within the past quarter. This signals that analyst sentiment is improving and the stock's earnings outlook is more positive.

Our latest available data shows that KO has returned about 26% since the start of the calendar year. Meanwhile, stocks in the Consumer Staples group have gained about 7.1% on average. This means that Coca-Cola is performing better than its sector in terms of year-to-date returns.

Another stock in the Consumer Staples sector, Philip Morris (PM - Free Report) , has outperformed the sector so far this year. The stock's year-to-date return is 19%.

The consensus estimate for Philip Morris' current year EPS has increased 0.5% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).

Looking more specifically, Coca-Cola belongs to the Beverages - Soft drinks industry, which includes 20 individual stocks and currently sits at #196 in the Zacks Industry Rank. Stocks in this group have gained about 13% so far this year, so KO is performing better this group in terms of year-to-date returns.

On the other hand, Philip Morris belongs to the Tobacco industry. This 8-stock industry is currently ranked #227. The industry has moved +13.2% year to date.

Coca-Cola and Philip Morris could continue their solid performance, so investors interested in Consumer Staples stocks should continue to pay close attention to these stocks.

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