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Has Global Water Resources (GWRS) Outpaced Other Utilities Stocks This Year?

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Investors interested in Utilities stocks should always be looking to find the best-performing companies in the group. Is Global Water Resources, Inc. (GWRS - Free Report) one of those stocks right now? Let's take a closer look at the stock's year-to-date performance to find out.

Global Water Resources, Inc. is a member of the Utilities sector. This group includes 111 individual stocks and currently holds a Zacks Sector Rank of #14. 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. Global Water Resources, Inc. is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).

Within the past quarter, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for GWRS' full-year earnings has moved 12.5% higher. This is a sign of improving analyst sentiment and a positive earnings outlook trend.

According to our latest data, GWRS has moved about 3.8% on a year-to-date basis. Meanwhile, the Utilities sector has returned an average of -0.2% on a year-to-date basis. This shows that Global Water Resources, Inc. is outperforming its peers so far this year.

Iberdrola S.A. (IBDRY - Free Report) is another Utilities stock that has outperformed the sector so far this year. Since the beginning of the year, the stock has returned 7.7%.

Over the past three months, Iberdrola S.A.'s consensus EPS estimate for the current year has increased 0.7%. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).

To break things down more, Global Water Resources, Inc. belongs to the Utility - Water Supply industry, a group that includes 9 individual companies and currently sits at #178 in the Zacks Industry Rank. On average, this group has gained an average of 9.5% so far this year, meaning that GWRS is slightly underperforming its industry in terms of year-to-date returns.

On the other hand, Iberdrola S.A. belongs to the Utility - Electric Power industry. This 63-stock industry is currently ranked #161. The industry has moved -0.3% year to date.

Global Water Resources, Inc. and Iberdrola S.A. could continue their solid performance, so investors interested in Utilities stocks should continue to pay close attention to these stocks.

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