Are Utilities Stocks Lagging Avangrid (AGR) This Year?

Company Overview - Avangrid (AGR) is currently ranked 2 (Buy) in the Zacks Rank system, indicating a favorable outlook for the stock based on earnings estimate revisions and improving earnings outlooks [3] - The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Avangrid's full-year earnings has increased by 4.6% over the past quarter, reflecting stronger analyst sentiment and an improving earnings outlook [4] Performance Comparison - Year-to-date, Avangrid has gained approximately 9.5%, outperforming the average gain of 8.6% for the Utilities group [4] - In comparison, another Utilities stock, CenterPoint Energy (CNP), has returned 10.1% year-to-date and also holds a Zacks Rank of 2 (Buy) [5] Industry Context - Avangrid is part of the Utility - Electric Power industry, which consists of 60 companies and currently ranks 128 in the Zacks Industry Rank [6] - The Utility - Electric Power industry has seen an average gain of 11.8% this year, indicating that Avangrid is slightly underperforming its industry peers in this area [6] Sector Ranking - The Utilities group, which includes Avangrid, is currently ranked 8 within the Zacks Sector Rank, which encompasses 16 different groups ranked from best to worst [2]