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 Casella (CWST) 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.
Casella is a member of the Business Services sector. This group includes 272 individual stocks and currently holds a Zacks Sector Rank of #5. 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 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. Casella is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).
Over the past three months, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for CWST's full-year earnings has moved 11.2% higher. This is a sign of improving analyst sentiment and a positive earnings outlook trend.
Our latest available data shows that CWST has returned about 10.8% since the start of the calendar year. Meanwhile, the Business Services sector has returned an average of -4.4% on a year-to-date basis. This shows that Casella is outperforming its peers so far this year.
Another stock in the Business Services sector, Qifu Technology, Inc. (QFIN), has outperformed the sector so far this year. The stock's year-to-date return is 0.7%.
The consensus estimate for Qifu Technology, Inc.'s current year EPS has increased 8.4% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy).
Looking more specifically, Casella belongs to the Waste Removal Services industry, a group that includes 23 individual stocks and currently sits at #155 in the Zacks Industry Rank. This group has gained an average of 5.8% so far this year, so CWST is performing better in this area.
Qifu Technology, Inc. however, belongs to the Technology Services industry. Currently, this 131-stock industry is ranked #62. The industry has moved -15.4% so far this year.
Casella and Qifu 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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Casella Waste Systems, Inc. (CWST): Free Stock Analysis Report Qifu Technology, Inc. (QFIN): Free Stock Analysis ReportThis article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).
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