Are Medical Stocks Lagging CVS Health (CVS) This Year?

For those looking to find strong Medical stocks, it is prudent to search for companies in the group that are outperforming their peers. Has CVS Health (CVS) been one of those stocks this year? Let's take a closer look at the stock's year-to-date performance to find out.CVS Health is a member of our Medical group, which includes 956 different companies and currently sits at #4 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 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. CVS Health is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).The Zacks Consensus Estimate for CVS' full-year earnings has moved 4% higher within the past quarter. This signals that analyst sentiment is improving and the stock's earnings outlook is more positive.Our latest available data shows that CVS has returned about 79.7% since the start of the calendar year. Meanwhile, stocks in the Medical group have gained about 0.5% on average. This shows that CVS Health is outperforming its peers so far this year.Alignment Healthcare (ALHC) is another Medical stock that has outperformed the sector so far this year. Since the beginning of the year, the stock has returned 53.9%.In Alignment Healthcare's case, the consensus EPS estimate for the current year increased 46.4% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy).Looking more specifically, CVS Health belongs to the Medical Services industry, a group that includes 64 individual stocks and currently sits at #96 in the Zacks Industry Rank. This group has gained an average of 0.5% so far this year, so CVS is performing better in this area. Alignment Healthcare is also part of the same industry.Investors with an interest in Medical stocks should continue to track CVS Health and Alignment Healthcare. These stocks will be looking to continue their solid performance.Free Report: Profiting from the 2nd Wave of AI ExplosionThe next phase of the AI explosion is poised to create significant wealth for investors, especially those who get in early. It will add literally trillion of dollars to the economy and revolutionize nearly every part of our lives.Investors who bought shares like Nvidia at the right time have had a shot at huge gains.But the rocket ride in the "first wave" of AI stocks may soon come to an end. The sharp upward trajectory of these stocks will begin to level off, leaving exponential growth to a new wave of cutting-edge companies.Zacks' AI Boom 2.0: The Second Wave report reveals 4 under-the-radar companies that may soon be shining stars of AI’s next leap forward.Access AI Boom 2.0 now, absolutely free >>Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report CVS Health Corporation (CVS): Free Stock Analysis Report Alignment Healthcare, Inc. (ALHC): Free Stock Analysis ReportThis article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).Zacks Investment ResearchWeiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Zacks Weiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Zacks