Is Babcock International Group (BCKIY) Stock Outpacing Its Construction Peers This Year?

For those looking to find strong Construction stocks, it is prudent to search for companies in the group that are outperforming their peers. Has Babcock International Group PLC (BCKIY) been one of those stocks this year? 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.

Babcock International Group PLC is a member of the Construction sector. This group includes 92 individual stocks and currently holds a Zacks Sector Rank of #16. 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 model that highlights a variety of stocks with the right characteristics to outperform the market over the next one to three months. The system emphasizes earnings estimate revisions and favors companies with improving earnings outlooks. Babcock International Group PLC is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).

Over the past three months, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for BCKIY's full-year earnings has moved 3.3% higher. This shows that analyst sentiment has improved and the company's earnings outlook is stronger.

Based on the most recent data, BCKIY has returned 14.5% so far this year. In comparison, Construction companies have returned an average of 10.7%. This means that Babcock International Group PLC is outperforming the sector as a whole this year.

Fluor (FLR) is another Construction stock that has outperformed the sector so far this year. Since the beginning of the year, the stock has returned 15.2%.

Over the past three months, Fluor's consensus EPS estimate for the current year has increased 1%. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).

Looking more specifically, Babcock International Group PLC belongs to the Engineering - R and D Services industry, which includes 19 individual stocks and currently sits at #52 in the Zacks Industry Rank. On average, this group has gained an average of 11.5% so far this year, meaning that BCKIY is performing better in terms of year-to-date returns. Fluor is also part of the same industry.

Going forward, investors interested in Construction stocks should continue to pay close attention to Babcock International Group PLC and Fluor as they could maintain their solid performance.

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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).

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