Has VMware (VMW) Outpaced Other Computer and Technology Stocks This Year?

The Computer and Technology group has plenty of great stocks, but investors should always be looking for companies that are outperforming their peers. VMware (VMW) 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? A quick glance at the company's year-to-date performance in comparison to the rest of the Computer and Technology sector should help us answer this question.

VMware is a member of the Computer and Technology sector. This group includes 665 individual stocks and currently holds a Zacks Sector Rank of #10. 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. VMware is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).

Over the past 90 days, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for VMW's full-year earnings has moved 9.6% higher. This shows that analyst sentiment has improved and the company's earnings outlook is stronger.

Our latest available data shows that VMW has returned about 4% since the start of the calendar year. Meanwhile, stocks in the Computer and Technology group have lost about 5.1% on average. As we can see, VMware is performing better than its sector in the calendar year.

Another Computer and Technology stock, which has outperformed the sector so far this year, is JOYY (YY). The stock has returned 8.7% year-to-date.

For JOYY, the consensus EPS estimate for the current year has increased 81.4% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy).

To break things down more, VMware belongs to the Computer - Software industry, a group that includes 39 individual companies and currently sits at #100 in the Zacks Industry Rank. This group has lost an average of 6.6% so far this year, so VMW is performing better in this area.

In contrast, JOYY falls under the Internet - Services industry. Currently, this industry has 47 stocks and is ranked #211. Since the beginning of the year, the industry has moved -6%.

Going forward, investors interested in Computer and Technology stocks should continue to pay close attention to VMware and JOYY as they could maintain their solid performance.

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The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.