For those looking to find strong Construction stocks, it is prudent to search for companies in the group that are outperforming their peers. Emcor Group (EME) 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 Construction peers, we might be able to answer that question.
Emcor Group is one of 92 individual stocks in the Construction sector. Collectively, these companies sit at #15 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 proven system that emphasizes earnings estimates and estimate revisions, highlighting a variety of stocks that are displaying the right characteristics to beat the market over the next one to three months. Emcor Group is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for EME's full-year earnings has moved 0.9% higher within the past quarter. This means that analyst sentiment is stronger and the stock's earnings outlook is improving.
Based on the latest available data, EME has gained about 36.6% so far this year. In comparison, Construction companies have returned an average of 1.1%. This shows that Emcor Group is outperforming its peers so far this year.
Another Construction stock, which has outperformed the sector so far this year, is Comfort Systems (FIX). The stock has returned 114.5% year-to-date.
For Comfort Systems, the consensus EPS estimate for the current year has increased 20.6% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy).
Looking more specifically, Emcor Group belongs to the Building Products - Heavy Construction industry, a group that includes 9 individual stocks and currently sits at #46 in the Zacks Industry Rank. Stocks in this group have gained about 35.1% so far this year, so EME is performing better this group in terms of year-to-date returns.
On the other hand, Comfort Systems belongs to the Building Products - Air Conditioner and Heating industry. This 7-stock industry is currently ranked #173. The industry has moved +0.8% year to date.
Going forward, investors interested in Construction stocks should continue to pay close attention to Emcor Group and Comfort Systems as they could maintain their solid performance.
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EMCOR Group, Inc. (EME): Free Stock Analysis Report Comfort Systems USA, Inc. (FIX): Free Stock Analysis ReportThis article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).
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