3 Health Food Stocks To Buy Right Now

The health food market has grown substantially in recent years. From grocery stores to food delivery services and diet companies, more and more firms are offering fresh options. And many of these companies are now publicly traded, so investors can easily cash in on the healthy eating revolution.

The multibillion-dollar organic and health-conscious food industry is likely to grow in the coming years, especially as people continue to understand the horrible effects that eating non-nutritious, sugar-filled diets have on their bodies.

More than 100 million U.S. adults currently live with diabetes or pre-diabetes, according to a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report published in July. These are nothing short of crisis-level figures, as a third of American’s are now afflicted. What’s more, the disease was the seventh leading cause of death in the U.S. in 2015, according to the report.

“Now, more than ever, we must step up our efforts to reduce the burden of this serious disease,” CDC Director Brenda Fitzgerald said in a statement.

Luckily, there are many companies hoping to curb this epidemic. And Amazon’s (NASDAQ:AMZN) purchase of organic food chain Whole Foods might have just revved up the healthy eating push, as the e-commerce giant has already lowered the grocery chain’s notoriously high prices.

Now let’s take a look at a few companies with strong Zacks Ranks that also have the ability to profit as the health food and diet push heats up.

Weight Watchers International, Inc. (NYSE:WTW)

Weight Watchers just beat earnings expectations in its latest quarter, and the weight-loss and diet company—which Oprah Winfrey currently endorses—has seen its stock price soar since the mogul began to associate herself with the brand a couple of years ago. This year alone, the company has experienced a price change of 287%.

The New York-based company’s sales are projected to gain 12.46% to hit $315.80 million this quarter. On top of that, Weight Watchers’ full-year revenues are projected to reach $1.30 billion, which would mark an 11.19% year-over-year climb.

Weight Watchers has not received any upward revisions for this quarter within the last 60 days, but the company has received one for next quarter and the full fiscal year. Our current consensus estimates are calling for EPS growth of 49.48% this fiscal year, and that expansion is projected to continue, with current consensus estimates calling for 5.84% EPS growth in the next fiscal year.

Shares of Weight Watchers currently sit six dollars below its 52-week high of $49.32 a share, which means the company’s stock could climb its way up without the burden of having to clear a new threshold. Weight Watchers currently sports a Zacks Ranks #1 (Strong Buy).

Nutrisystem, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRI)

Nutrisystem is a weight-loss and diet company that focuses on portion control and balanced nutrition, while asking customers to eat six, smaller meals a day in order to achieve maximum weight loss and maintenance. The company currently holds a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) and earned an “A” score for Growth in our Style Scores system. Overall, the company has a “B” VGM grade.

Since Dawn Zier took over as Nutrisystem CEO five years ago, the company’s profits and stock price have skyrocketed. In fact, the weight-loss company’s sales have increased for 16 consecutive quarters.

The company’s 53.10% year-to-date price change blows away the industry average of a 4.92% loss. Nutrisystem’s sales are projected to jump 24.88% this quarter and grow by 26.60% to hit roughly $693 million this year. The company’s projected EPS growth for the year sits at 59.66%.

We’ve seen three positive revisions to Nutrisystem’s current-quarter earnings estimates within the past 60 days, as well as three upward revisions for the next year and the following year.

SodaStream International Ltd. (NASDAQ:SODA)

Make-your-own carbonated drink company SodaStream is currently a Zacks Rank #1 (Buy) and scored a “B” grade for Growth in our Style Scores system. The company’s stock price has more than doubled over the last 12 months, making it one of the hottest stocks in this space.

SodaStream received two positive earnings estimate revisions for this quarter, next quarter, the current full-year, and its next fiscal year—all within the last 60 days. The Zacks Consensus Estimate calls for 6.52% EPS growth in this quarter and a 33.57% pop for the full year.

Our consensus estimate currently calls for $136 million worth of sales this quarter, which would mark an 8.72% year-over-year jump. We also project full-year revenues to climb 10.10% to hit $524.30 million.

SodaStream’s stock price currently rests more than four dollars below its 52-week high of $63.25 a share, which means the company’s shares have room to grow again. And if enough people realize that one of the easiest ways to stay healthy and lose weight is to drink more water, the company that makes sparkling and flavored water could be poised to really cash in.

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