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Are Business Services Stocks Lagging Agora (API) This Year?

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For those looking to find strong Business Services stocks, it is prudent to search for companies in the group that are outperforming their peers. Has Agora, Inc. Sponsored ADR (API - Free Report) been one of those stocks this year? 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.

Agora, Inc. Sponsored ADR is one of 238 companies in the Business Services group. The Business Services group currently sits at #13 within 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 emphasizes earnings estimates and estimate revisions to find stocks with improving earnings outlooks. This system has a long record of success, and these stocks tend to be on track to beat the market over the next one to three months. Agora, Inc. Sponsored ADR is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).

Over the past 90 days, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for API's full-year earnings has moved 54.5% higher. This shows that analyst sentiment has improved and the company's earnings outlook is stronger.

According to our latest data, API has moved about 10.6% on a year-to-date basis. At the same time, Business Services stocks have lost an average of 7.4%. This means that Agora, Inc. Sponsored ADR is performing better than its sector in terms of year-to-date returns.

HireQuest, Inc. (HQI - 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 3%.

In HireQuest, Inc.'s case, the consensus EPS estimate for the current year increased 13.6% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).

Looking more specifically, Agora, Inc. Sponsored ADR belongs to the Technology Services industry, a group that includes 110 individual stocks and currently sits at #155 in the Zacks Industry Rank. On average, this group has gained an average of 21.6% so far this year, meaning that API is slightly underperforming its industry in terms of year-to-date returns.

On the other hand, HireQuest, Inc. belongs to the Staffing Firms industry. This 14-stock industry is currently ranked #232. The industry has moved -40.4% year to date.

Investors with an interest in Business Services stocks should continue to track Agora, Inc. Sponsored ADR and HireQuest, Inc.. These stocks will be looking to continue their solid performance.


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