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Is Halliburton (HAL) Outperforming Other Oils-Energy Stocks This Year?

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For those looking to find strong Oils-Energy stocks, it is prudent to search for companies in the group that are outperforming their peers. Halliburton (HAL - Free Report) 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 Oils-Energy sector should help us answer this question.

Halliburton is one of 247 individual stocks in the Oils-Energy sector. Collectively, these companies sit at #5 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 successful stock-picking model that emphasizes earnings estimates and estimate revisions. The system highlights a number of different stocks that could be poised to outperform the broader market over the next one to three months. Halliburton is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #1 (Strong Buy).

Over the past three months, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for HAL's full-year earnings has moved 4.4% higher. This is a sign of improving analyst sentiment and a positive earnings outlook trend.

Our latest available data shows that HAL has returned about 56.8% since the start of the calendar year. Meanwhile, the Oils-Energy sector has returned an average of 32.9% on a year-to-date basis. This shows that Halliburton is outperforming its peers so far this year.

Another Oils-Energy stock, which has outperformed the sector so far this year, is Liberty Oilfield Services (LBRT - Free Report) . The stock has returned 60.5% year-to-date.

Over the past three months, Liberty Oilfield Services' consensus EPS estimate for the current year has increased 11.4%. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).

Looking more specifically, Halliburton belongs to the Oil and Gas - Field Services industry, a group that includes 25 individual stocks and currently sits at #21 in the Zacks Industry Rank. On average, stocks in this group have gained 15% this year, meaning that HAL is performing better in terms of year-to-date returns. Liberty Oilfield Services is also part of the same industry.

Investors interested in the Oils-Energy sector may want to keep a close eye on Halliburton and Liberty Oilfield Services as they attempt to continue their solid performance.


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