NiSource Set For Outperformance But CenterPoint Energy Faces Regulatory Hurdles, Says BofA Analyst

The Utilities group has plenty of great stocks, but investors should always be looking for companies that are outperforming their peers. Evergy Inc (EVRG) 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? Let's take a closer look at the stock's year-to-date performance to find out.

Evergy Inc is one of 105 companies in the Utilities group. The Utilities group currently sits at #6 within the Zacks Sector Rank. 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. Evergy Inc is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for EVRG's full-year earnings has moved 0% higher within the past quarter. This means that analyst sentiment is stronger and the stock's earnings outlook is improving.

Our latest available data shows that EVRG has returned about 15.1% since the start of the calendar year. Meanwhile, stocks in the Utilities group have gained about 14.7% on average. This means that Evergy Inc is performing better than its sector in terms of year-to-date returns.

One other Utilities stock that has outperformed the sector so far this year is NiSource (NI). The stock is up 26.4% year-to-date.

For NiSource, the consensus EPS estimate for the current year has increased 0.7% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).

Breaking things down more, Evergy Inc is a member of the Utility - Electric Power industry, which includes 59 individual companies and currently sits at #64 in the Zacks Industry Rank. On average, this group has gained an average of 18.5% so far this year, meaning that EVRG is slightly underperforming its industry in terms of year-to-date returns. NiSource is also part of the same industry.

Evergy Inc and NiSource could continue their solid performance, so investors interested in Utilities stocks should continue to pay close attention to these stocks.

Zacks Investment Research