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Are Business Services Stocks Lagging Deluxe (DLX) 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 Deluxe (DLX - Free Report) been one of those stocks this year? 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.

Deluxe 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 gauges the strength of our 16 individual sector groups by measuring the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks within the groups.

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

Over the past 90 days, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for DLX's full-year earnings has moved 10.5% higher. This is a sign of improving analyst sentiment and a positive earnings outlook trend.

Based on the most recent data, DLX has returned 20.9% so far this year. At the same time, Business Services stocks have lost an average of 14.5%. This means that Deluxe is performing better than its sector in terms of year-to-date returns.

Another stock in the Business Services sector, GigaCloud Technology Inc. (GCT - Free Report) , has outperformed the sector so far this year. The stock's year-to-date return is 5.9%.

For GigaCloud Technology Inc., the consensus EPS estimate for the current year has increased 17.1% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).

Looking more specifically, Deluxe belongs to the Business - Office Products industry, which includes 2 individual stocks and currently sits at #24 in the Zacks Industry Rank. On average, stocks in this group have lost 4.9% this year, meaning that DLX is performing better in terms of year-to-date returns.

On the other hand, GigaCloud Technology Inc. belongs to the Technology Services industry. This 109-stock industry is currently ranked #187. The industry has moved -15.6% year to date.

Deluxe and GigaCloud Technology Inc. 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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