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The Consumer Discretionary group has plenty of great stocks, but investors should always be looking for companies that are outperforming their peers. Has Laureate Education (LAUR) 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 Consumer Discretionary sector should help us answer this question.
Laureate Education is a member of the Consumer Discretionary sector. This group includes 270 individual stocks and currently holds a Zacks Sector Rank of #8. 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. Laureate Education is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).
Within the past quarter, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for LAUR's full-year earnings has moved 0.7% higher. This shows that analyst sentiment has improved and the company's earnings outlook is stronger.
According to our latest data, LAUR has moved about 36.7% on a year-to-date basis. In comparison, Consumer Discretionary companies have returned an average of 11.6%. As we can see, Laureate Education is performing better than its sector in the calendar year.
Grand Canyon Education (LOPE) is another Consumer Discretionary stock that has outperformed the sector so far this year. Since the beginning of the year, the stock has returned 29.2%.
In Grand Canyon Education's case, the consensus EPS estimate for the current year increased 0.6% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).
Looking more specifically, Laureate Education belongs to the Schools industry, a group that includes 17 individual stocks and currently sits at #18 in the Zacks Industry Rank. This group has gained an average of 8% so far this year, so LAUR is performing better in this area. Grand Canyon Education is also part of the same industry.
Laureate Education and Grand Canyon Education could continue their solid performance, so investors interested in Consumer Discretionary stocks should continue to pay close attention to these stocks.
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Laureate Education (LAUR) : Free Stock Analysis Report