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Are Business Services Stocks Lagging ABM Industries (ABM) This Year?

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The Business Services group has plenty of great stocks, but investors should always be looking for companies that are outperforming their peers. ABM Industries (ABM - 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? 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.

ABM Industries is a member of our Business Services group, which includes 317 different companies and currently sits at #5 in the Zacks Sector Rank. The Zacks Sector Rank includes 16 different groups and is listed in order from best to worst in terms of the average Zacks Rank of the individual companies within each of these sectors.

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. ABM Industries is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).

Over the past three months, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for ABM's full-year earnings has moved 0% higher. This signals that analyst sentiment is improving and the stock's earnings outlook is more positive.

Our latest available data shows that ABM has returned about 25.1% since the start of the calendar year. At the same time, Business Services stocks have gained an average of 10.7%. This means that ABM Industries is outperforming the sector as a whole this year.

CRA International (CRAI - Free Report) is another Business Services stock that has outperformed the sector so far this year. Since the beginning of the year, the stock has returned 65.6%.

Over the past three months, CRA International's consensus EPS estimate for the current year has increased 12%. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy).

To break things down more, ABM Industries belongs to the Building Products - Maintenance Service industry, a group that includes 3 individual companies and currently sits at #4 in the Zacks Industry Rank. On average, stocks in this group have gained 17% this year, meaning that ABM is performing better in terms of year-to-date returns.

In contrast, CRA International falls under the Consulting Services industry. Currently, this industry has 13 stocks and is ranked #100. Since the beginning of the year, the industry has moved +6.8%.

Going forward, investors interested in Business Services stocks should continue to pay close attention to ABM Industries and CRA International as they could maintain their solid performance.


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