Investors focused on the Basic Materials space have likely heard of Arch Coal (ARCH), but is the stock performing well in comparison to the rest of its sector peers? By taking a look at the stock's year-to-date performance in comparison to its Basic Materials peers, we might be able to answer that question.
Arch Coal is a member of our Basic Materials group, which includes 241 different companies and currently sits at #13 in the Zacks Sector Rank. The Zacks Sector Rank considers 16 different sector groups. The average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks within the groups is measured, and the sectors are listed from best to worst.
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. ARCH is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for ARCH's full-year earnings has moved 8.46% higher within the past quarter. This means that analyst sentiment is stronger and the stock's earnings outlook is improving.
Based on the most recent data, ARCH has returned 9.48% so far this year. Meanwhile, the Basic Materials sector has returned an average of 13.64% on a year-to-date basis. As we can see, Arch Coal is performing better than its sector in the calendar year.
To break things down more, ARCH belongs to the Mining - Miscellaneous industry, a group that includes 39 individual companies and currently sits at #40 in the Zacks Industry Rank. This group has gained an average of 17.05% so far this year, so ARCH is slightly underperforming its industry in this area.
Going forward, investors interested in Basic Materials stocks should continue to pay close attention to ARCH as it looks to continue its solid performance.
Arch Coal Inc. (ARCH): Free Stock Analysis Report
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