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Is Red Hat (RHT) Stock Outpacing Its Computer and Technology Peers This Year?

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Investors focused on the Computer and Technology space have likely heard of Red Hat , but is the stock performing well in comparison to the rest of its sector peers? A quick glance at the company's year-to-date performance in comparison to the rest of the Computer and Technology sector should help us answer this question.

Red Hat is a member of the Computer and Technology sector. This group includes 640 individual stocks and currently holds a Zacks Sector Rank of #6. 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 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. RHT is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #1 (Strong Buy).

Over the past three months, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for RHT's full-year earnings has moved 5.29% higher. This signals that analyst sentiment is improving and the stock's earnings outlook is more positive.

Our latest available data shows that RHT has returned about 6.87% since the start of the calendar year. Meanwhile, the Computer and Technology sector has returned an average of 21.65% on a year-to-date basis. This means that Red Hat is performing better than its sector in terms of year-to-date returns.

Breaking things down more, RHT is a member of the Computer - Software industry, which includes 49 individual companies and currently sits at #84 in the Zacks Industry Rank. This group has gained an average of 33.91% so far this year, so RHT is slightly underperforming its industry in this area.

Investors in the Computer and Technology sector will want to keep a close eye on RHT as it attempts to continue its solid performance.

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