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Are Conglomerates Stocks Lagging Hitachi (HTHIY) This Year?

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For those looking to find strong Conglomerates stocks, it is prudent to search for companies in the group that are outperforming their peers. Has Hitachi Ltd. (HTHIY - Free Report) been one of those stocks this year? Let's take a closer look at the stock's year-to-date performance to find out.

Hitachi Ltd. is one of 27 companies in the Conglomerates group. The Conglomerates group currently sits at #1 within the Zacks Sector Rank. The Zacks Sector Rank gauges the strength of our 16 individual sector groups by measuring the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks within the groups.

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. Hitachi Ltd. is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).

Over the past three months, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for HTHIY's full-year earnings has moved 6.4% higher. This is a sign of improving analyst sentiment and a positive earnings outlook trend.

Our latest available data shows that HTHIY has returned about 14.3% since the start of the calendar year. Meanwhile, stocks in the Conglomerates group have lost about 14.9% on average. This shows that Hitachi Ltd. is outperforming its peers so far this year.

Another stock in the Conglomerates sector, Mitsui & Co. (MITSY - Free Report) , has outperformed the sector so far this year. The stock's year-to-date return is 13.3%.

In Mitsui & Co.'s case, the consensus EPS estimate for the current year increased 1.3% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).

Looking more specifically, Hitachi Ltd. belongs to the Diversified Operations industry, a group that includes 27 individual stocks and currently sits at #50 in the Zacks Industry Rank. On average, this group has lost an average of 14.9% so far this year, meaning that HTHIY is performing better in terms of year-to-date returns. Mitsui & Co. is also part of the same industry.

Investors with an interest in Conglomerates stocks should continue to track Hitachi Ltd. and Mitsui & Co.. These stocks will be looking to continue their solid performance.

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