For the week, commercial banking, aerospace and defense, life science, biotechnology and auto parts are the top sectors on the Portfolio Grader database.
The commercial banking sector’s track record is proving one of the best with 100% of its stocks (5 out of 5) rating a “buy”. Among commercial banking stocks, StellarOne Corporation (STEL) and Citizens Republic Bancorp (CRBC) are leading the way with grades of B. Pacific Capital Bancorp (PCBC) also has a top grade of A.
The aerospace and defense sector is thriving on Portfolio Grader this week, with 74% of its stocks (31 out of 42) currently rating a “buy”. Huntington Ingalls Industries, Inc. (HII), Alliant Techsystem (ATK) and TASER International, Inc. (TASR) are paving the way for the sector with A grades. Huntington Ingalls Industries, Inc. is the best performer in this sector, with a 206.9% increase in the last 12 months.
Life science is thriving this week with 71% of stocks in the sector (17 out of 24) currently rating a “buy”. Among life science stocks, Wuxi PharmaTech (Cayman) Inc. Sponsored ADR (WX), Covance (CVD) and Illumina, Inc. (ILMN) are leading the way with A’s. Showing the most overall growth in its sector in the last 12 months, Wuxi PharmaTech (Cayman) Inc. Sponsored ADR is the top stock, with a 237.6% increase.
Biotechnology stands out with 70% of the sector’s stocks (67 out of 96) rating a “buy”. With overall grades of A, Enanta Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (ENTA), Gentium S.p.A. Sponsored ADR (GENT) and Repligen Corporation (RGEN) are buoying the sector. Repligen Corporation beats the other stocks in its sector, with a 611.6% increase from a year ago.
With 68% of the sector’s stocks (17 out of 25) rating a “buy,” the auto parts sector is one of the strongest. Dorman Products, Inc. (DORM), Magna International (MGA) and Cooper-Standard Holdings Inc. (CPS) are all currently earning A’s. The best performer in this sector is Magna International, which saw its price rise 198.4% in the last 12 months.
Louis Navellier’s proprietary Portfolio Grader stock ranking system assesses roughly 5,000 companies every week based on a number of fundamental and quantitative measures. Stocks are given a letter grade based on their results — with A being “strong buy,” and F being “strong sell.” Explore the tool here.
