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Are Medical Stocks Lagging Athira Pharma (ATHA) This Year?

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Investors interested in Medical stocks should always be looking to find the best-performing companies in the group. Has Athira Pharma, Inc. (ATHA - Free Report) been one of those stocks this year? By taking a look at the stock's year-to-date performance in comparison to its Medical peers, we might be able to answer that question.

Athira Pharma, Inc. is one of 1017 companies in the Medical group. The Medical group currently sits at #5 within 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 proven system that emphasizes earnings estimates and estimate revisions, highlighting a variety of stocks that are displaying the right characteristics to beat the market over the next one to three months. Athira Pharma, Inc. is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).

Within the past quarter, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for ATHA's full-year earnings has moved 8.2% higher. This means that analyst sentiment is stronger and the stock's earnings outlook is improving.

According to our latest data, ATHA has moved about 28% on a year-to-date basis. Meanwhile, stocks in the Medical group have gained about 11.1% on average. This shows that Athira Pharma, Inc. is outperforming its peers so far this year.

HCA Healthcare (HCA - Free Report) is another Medical stock that has outperformed the sector so far this year. Since the beginning of the year, the stock has returned 41.5%.

Over the past three months, HCA Healthcare's consensus EPS estimate for the current year has increased 7.3%. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy).

To break things down more, Athira Pharma, Inc. belongs to the Medical - Biomedical and Genetics industry, a group that includes 497 individual companies and currently sits at #84 in the Zacks Industry Rank. This group has gained an average of 1.9% so far this year, so ATHA is performing better in this area.

On the other hand, HCA Healthcare belongs to the Medical - Hospital industry. This 5-stock industry is currently ranked #2. The industry has moved +43% year to date.

Investors with an interest in Medical stocks should continue to track Athira Pharma, Inc. and HCA Healthcare. These stocks will be looking to continue their solid performance.


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