Is Arcos Dorados (ARCO) Stock Outpacing Its Retail-Wholesale Peers This Year?

For those looking to find strong Retail-Wholesale stocks, it is prudent to search for companies in the group that are outperforming their peers. Arcos Dorados (ARCO) 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 Retail-Wholesale peers, we might be able to answer that question.

Arcos Dorados is a member of the Retail-Wholesale sector. This group includes 229 individual stocks and currently holds a Zacks Sector Rank of #15. The Zacks Sector Rank gauges the strength of our 16 individual sector groups by measuring the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks within the groups.

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. Arcos Dorados is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).

Over the past three months, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for ARCO's full-year earnings has moved 10.5% higher. This signals that analyst sentiment is improving and the stock's earnings outlook is more positive.

Based on the most recent data, ARCO has returned 26.8% so far this year. Meanwhile, the Retail-Wholesale sector has returned an average of -20.7% on a year-to-date basis. As we can see, Arcos Dorados is performing better than its sector in the calendar year.

Another stock in the Retail-Wholesale sector, Dillard's (DDS), has outperformed the sector so far this year. The stock's year-to-date return is 21.6%.

For Dillard's, the consensus EPS estimate for the current year has increased 36.9% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy).

Breaking things down more, Arcos Dorados is a member of the Retail - Restaurants industry, which includes 43 individual companies and currently sits at #185 in the Zacks Industry Rank. This group has lost an average of 14% so far this year, so ARCO is performing better in this area.

In contrast, Dillard's falls under the Retail - Regional Department Stores industry. Currently, this industry has 3 stocks and is ranked #91. Since the beginning of the year, the industry has moved -21.7%.

Investors interested in the Retail-Wholesale sector may want to keep a close eye on Arcos Dorados and Dillard's as they attempt to continue 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.