Investors interested in Utilities stocks should always be looking to find the best-performing companies in the group. Ameren (AEE) 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.

Ameren is a member of our Utilities group, which includes 104 different companies and currently sits at #5 in the Zacks Sector Rank. The Zacks Sector Rank considers 16 different groups, measuring the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks within the sector to gauge the strength of each group.

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

Over the past 90 days, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for AEE's full-year earnings has moved 0.1% higher. This means that analyst sentiment is stronger and the stock's earnings outlook is improving.

Based on the most recent data, AEE has returned 10.6% so far this year. At the same time, Utilities stocks have gained an average of 2.9%. As we can see, Ameren is performing better than its sector in the calendar year.

Another stock in the Utilities sector, Atmos Energy (ATO), has outperformed the sector so far this year. The stock's year-to-date return is 6.7%.

The consensus estimate for Atmos Energy's current year EPS has increased 0.5% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).

To break things down more, Ameren belongs to the Utility - Electric Power industry, a group that includes 60 individual companies and currently sits at #69 in the Zacks Industry Rank. This group has gained an average of 3% so far this year, so AEE is performing better in this area.

In contrast, Atmos Energy falls under the Utility - Gas Distribution industry. Currently, this industry has 13 stocks and is ranked #41. Since the beginning of the year, the industry has moved -7.5%.

Investors interested in the Utilities sector may want to keep a close eye on Ameren and Atmos Energy as they attempt to continue their solid performance.

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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).

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