Are Oils-Energy Stocks Lagging Equinor (EQNR) This Year?
For those looking to find strong Oils-Energy stocks, it is prudent to search for companies in the group that are outperforming their peers. Equinor (EQNR) is a stock that can certainly grab the attention of many investors, but do its recent returns compare favorably to the sector as a whole? By taking a look at the stock’s year-to-date performance in comparison to its Oils-Energy peers, we might be able to answer that question.
Equinor is a member of our Oils-Energy group, which includes 254 different companies and currently sits at #1 in the Zacks Sector Rank. The Zacks Sector Rank considers 16 different groups, measuring the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks within the sector to gauge the strength of each group.
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. Equinor is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #1 (Strong Buy).
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for EQNR’s full-year earnings has moved 14% higher within the past quarter. This is a sign of improving analyst sentiment and a positive earnings outlook trend.
According to our latest data, EQNR has moved about 101.4% on a year-to-date basis. Meanwhile, stocks in the Oils-Energy group have gained about 41.8% on average. As we can see, Equinor is performing better than its sector in the calendar year.
Another stock in the Oils-Energy sector, Montauk Renewables (MNTK), has outperformed the sector so far this year. The stock’s year-to-date return is 41.9%.
The consensus estimate for Montauk Renewables’ current year EPS has increased 20% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy).
Looking more specifically, Equinor belongs to the Oil and Gas – Refining and Marketing industry, which includes 15 individual stocks and currently sits at #6 in the Zacks Industry Rank. This group has gained an average of 139.7% so far this year, so EQNR is slightly underperforming its industry in this area.
On the other hand, Montauk Renewables belongs to the Alternative Energy – Other industry. This 59-stock industry is currently ranked #99. The industry has moved -5% year to date.
Going forward, investors interested in Oils-Energy stocks should continue to pay close attention to Equinor and Montauk Renewables as they could maintain their solid performance.
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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).