For those looking to find strong Business Services stocks, it is prudent to search for companies in the group that are outperforming their peers. Is Esco Technologies (ESE) one of those stocks right now? By taking a look at the stock's year-to-date performance in comparison to its Business Services peers, we might be able to answer that question.
Esco Technologies is a member of our Business Services group, which includes 245 different companies and currently sits at #7 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 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. Esco Technologies is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).
Over the past three months, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for ESE's full-year earnings has moved 1.6% higher. This shows that analyst sentiment has improved and the company's earnings outlook is stronger.
Based on the most recent data, ESE has returned 31.5% so far this year. Meanwhile, the Business Services sector has returned an average of -13.8% on a year-to-date basis. This shows that Esco Technologies is outperforming its peers so far this year.
Another stock in the Business Services sector, FirstCash Holdings (FCFS), has outperformed the sector so far this year. The stock's year-to-date return is 31.5%.
Over the past three months, FirstCash Holdings' consensus EPS estimate for the current year has increased 4.6%. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).
Looking more specifically, Esco Technologies belongs to the Technology Services industry, a group that includes 123 individual stocks and currently sits at #176 in the Zacks Industry Rank. On average, this group has lost an average of 15.1% so far this year, meaning that ESE is performing better in terms of year-to-date returns.
FirstCash Holdings, however, belongs to the Financial Transaction Services industry. Currently, this 36-stock industry is ranked #94. The industry has moved -11.8% so far this year.
Investors with an interest in Business Services stocks should continue to track Esco Technologies and FirstCash Holdings. These stocks will be looking to continue their solid performance.
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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).