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Are Consumer Discretionary Stocks Lagging Royal Caribbean Cruises (RCL) This Year?

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For those looking to find strong Consumer Discretionary stocks, it is prudent to search for companies in the group that are outperforming their peers. Royal Caribbean (RCL - Free Report) 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 Consumer Discretionary peers, we might be able to answer that question.

Royal Caribbean is a member of the Consumer Discretionary sector. This group includes 275 individual stocks and currently holds a Zacks Sector Rank of #11. 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. Royal Caribbean is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).

Over the past three months, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for RCL's full-year earnings has moved 10.6% higher. This signals that analyst sentiment is improving and the stock's earnings outlook is more positive.

Our latest available data shows that RCL has returned about 32.1% since the start of the calendar year. At the same time, Consumer Discretionary stocks have gained an average of 11.1%. This means that Royal Caribbean is outperforming the sector as a whole this year.

One other Consumer Discretionary stock that has outperformed the sector so far this year is Wynn Resorts (WYNN - Free Report) . The stock is up 35.7% year-to-date.

For Wynn Resorts, the consensus EPS estimate for the current year has increased 272.6% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy).

Breaking things down more, Royal Caribbean is a member of the Leisure and Recreation Services industry, which includes 33 individual companies and currently sits at #29 in the Zacks Industry Rank. This group has gained an average of 11.6% so far this year, so RCL is performing better in this area.

On the other hand, Wynn Resorts belongs to the Gaming industry. This 38-stock industry is currently ranked #85. The industry has moved +26.5% year to date.

Investors interested in the Consumer Discretionary sector may want to keep a close eye on Royal Caribbean and Wynn Resorts as they attempt to continue their solid performance.


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