Benzinga - by Zacks, Benzinga Contributor.
For those looking to find strong Computer and Technology stocks, it is prudent to search for companies in the group that are outperforming their peers. Has Silicon Motion (NASDAQ: SIMO) 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 Computer and Technology sector should help us answer this question.
Silicon Motion is a member of our Computer and Technology group, which includes 619 different companies and currently sits at #11 in 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 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. Silicon Motion is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #1 (Strong Buy).
Over the past three months, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for SIMO's full-year earnings has moved 5.8% higher. This signals that analyst sentiment is improving and the stock's earnings outlook is more positive.
Based on the latest available data, SIMO has gained about 36.6% so far this year. Meanwhile, the Computer and Technology sector has returned an average of 19.7% on a year-to-date basis. As we can see, Silicon Motion is performing better than its sector in the calendar year.
Another stock in the Computer and Technology sector, Amphenol (NYSE: APH), has outperformed the sector so far this year. The stock's year-to-date return is 32%.
For Amphenol, the consensus EPS estimate for the current year has increased 3.7% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).
Looking more specifically, Silicon Motion belongs to the Electronics - Semiconductors industry, a group that includes 41 individual stocks and currently sits at #158 in the Zacks Industry Rank. Stocks in this group have gained about 16.1% so far this year, so SIMO is performing better this group in terms of year-to-date returns.
In contrast, Amphenol falls under the Electronics - Connectors industry. Currently, this industry has 2 stocks and is ranked #19. Since the beginning of the year, the industry has moved +31.2%.
Silicon Motion and Amphenol could continue their solid performance, so investors interested in Computer and Technology stocks should continue to pay close attention to these stocks.
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