Back to top

Image: Bigstock

Are Industrial Products Stocks Lagging AZZ (AZZ) This Year?

Read MoreHide Full Article

Investors interested in Industrial Products stocks should always be looking to find the best-performing companies in the group. Has AZZ (AZZ - Free Report) been one of those stocks this year? A quick glance at the company's year-to-date performance in comparison to the rest of the Industrial Products sector should help us answer this question.

AZZ is one of 188 individual stocks in the Industrial Products sector. Collectively, these companies sit at #9 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. AZZ is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).

Within the past quarter, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for AZZ's full-year earnings has moved 1.3% higher. This signals that analyst sentiment is improving and the stock's earnings outlook is more positive.

According to our latest data, AZZ has moved about 29.3% on a year-to-date basis. Meanwhile, stocks in the Industrial Products group have gained about 11.7% on average. This means that AZZ is outperforming the sector as a whole this year.

Another stock in the Industrial Products sector, Crown Holdings (CCK - Free Report) , has outperformed the sector so far this year. The stock's year-to-date return is 12.9%.

The consensus estimate for Crown Holdings' current year EPS has increased 0.2% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).

Breaking things down more, AZZ is a member of the Manufacturing - Electronics industry, which includes 14 individual companies and currently sits at #91 in the Zacks Industry Rank. This group has gained an average of 21.6% so far this year, so AZZ is performing better in this area.

On the other hand, Crown Holdings belongs to the Containers - Metal and Glass industry. This 4-stock industry is currently ranked #58. The industry has moved +12.3% year to date.

AZZ and Crown Holdings could continue their solid performance, so investors interested in Industrial Products stocks should continue to pay close attention to these stocks.

Published in