The commercial banking, reit, water utilities, electric utilities and household products sectors are rising to the top this week on the Portfolio Grader database.
Commercial banking is excelling, with 100% of stocks in the sector (5 out of 5) rating a “buy”. Near the top of their sector, Pacific Capital Bancorp (PCBC) and StellarOne Corporation (STEL) have A ratings. Citizens Republic Bancorp (CRBC) also gets a B.
The reit sector’s track record is proving one of the best with 85% of its stocks (151 out of 177) rating a “buy”. Out of the reit stocks, New York Mortgage Trust, Inc. (NYMT), Chimera Investment Corporation (CIM) and Weingarten Realty Investors (WRI) are out front with A’s. Weingarten Realty Investors beats the other stocks in its sector, with a 66.6% increase from a year ago.
The water utilities sector is thriving on Portfolio Grader this week, with 83% of its stocks (5 out of 6) currently rating a “buy”. Within the water utilities sector, American States Water Company (AWR) and American Water Works Company, Inc. (AWK) receive top marks of A’s. SJW Corp. (SJW) is also getting a B. American Water Works Company, Inc. is the best performer in this sector, with a 69.5% increase in the last 12 months.
Electric utilities is thriving this week with 80% of stocks in the sector (33 out of 41) currently rating a “buy”. Edison International (EIX), Unitil Corporation (UTL) and Exelon Corporation (EXC) are all currently earning A’s. The best performer in this sector is Edison International, which saw its price rise 67.4% in the last 12 months.
With 78% of the sector’s stocks (7 out of 9) rating a “buy,” the household products sector is one of the strongest. Church & Dwight Co., Inc. (CHD), Spectrum Brands Holdings, Inc. (SPB) and Procter & Gamble Company (PG) are lifting the sector overall, each earning a high grade of A. Over the last 12 months, Spectrum Brands Holdings, Inc. is the best performer in this sector, with a 277.8% increase.
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.
