Investors interested in Business Services stocks should always be looking to find the best-performing companies in the group. Clear Channel Outdoor (CCO) 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? A quick glance at the company's year-to-date performance in comparison to the rest of the Business Services sector should help us answer this question.
Clear Channel Outdoor is one of 234 companies in the Business Services group. The Business Services group currently sits at #11 within 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 model that highlights a variety of stocks with the right characteristics to outperform the market over the next one to three months. The system emphasizes earnings estimate revisions and favors companies with improving earnings outlooks. Clear Channel Outdoor is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for CCO's full-year earnings has moved 14.3% higher within the past quarter. This shows that analyst sentiment has improved and the company's earnings outlook is stronger.
Based on the latest available data, CCO has gained about 7.7% so far this year. In comparison, Business Services companies have returned an average of -10.7%. As we can see, Clear Channel Outdoor is performing better than its sector in the calendar year.
Evertec (EVTC) is another Business Services stock that has outperformed the sector so far this year. Since the beginning of the year, the stock has returned 0.5%.
In Evertec's case, the consensus EPS estimate for the current year increased 2.5% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).
Breaking things down more, Clear Channel Outdoor is a member of the Advertising and Marketing industry, which includes 15 individual companies and currently sits at #66 in the Zacks Industry Rank. This group has lost an average of 11.5% so far this year, so CCO is performing better in this area.
In contrast, Evertec falls under the Financial Transaction Services industry. Currently, this industry has 36 stocks and is ranked #149. Since the beginning of the year, the industry has moved -16.2%.
Clear Channel Outdoor and Evertec could continue their solid performance, so investors interested in Business Services stocks should continue to pay close attention to these stocks.
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Clear Channel Outdoor Holdings, Inc. (CCO): Free Stock Analysis Report
Evertec, Inc. (EVTC): Free Stock Analysis Report
This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).