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Is Ameren (AEE) Stock Outpacing Its Utilities Peers This Year?

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Investors interested in Utilities stocks should always be looking to find the best-performing companies in the group. Has Ameren (AEE - Free Report) 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 Utilities sector should help us answer this question.

Ameren is one of 105 individual stocks in the Utilities sector. Collectively, these companies sit at #1 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 is a proven model that highlights a variety of stocks with the right characteristics to outperform the market over the next one to three months. The system emphasizes earnings estimate revisions and favors companies with improving earnings outlooks. Ameren is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).

Over the past three months, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for AEE's full-year earnings has moved 0.3% higher. This is a sign of improving analyst sentiment and a positive earnings outlook trend.

Our latest available data shows that AEE has returned about 6.5% since the start of the calendar year. At the same time, Utilities stocks have gained an average of 6%. This means that Ameren is performing better than its sector in terms of year-to-date returns.

Another Utilities stock, which has outperformed the sector so far this year, is American Electric Power (AEP - Free Report) . The stock has returned 17% year-to-date.

The consensus estimate for American Electric Power's current year EPS has increased 0.8% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).

To break things down more, Ameren belongs to the Utility - Electric Power industry, a group that includes 59 individual companies and currently sits at #52 in the Zacks Industry Rank. On average, this group has gained an average of 8.3% so far this year, meaning that AEE is slightly underperforming its industry in terms of year-to-date returns. American Electric Power is also part of the same industry.

Investors interested in the Utilities sector may want to keep a close eye on Ameren and American Electric Power as they attempt to continue their solid performance.


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