For those looking to find strong Construction stocks, it is prudent to search for companies in the group that are outperforming their peers. Quanta Services (PWR) 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.
Quanta Services is one of 92 companies in the Construction group. The Construction group currently sits at #16 within the Zacks Sector Rank. The Zacks Sector Rank includes 16 different groups and is listed in order from best to worst in terms of the average Zacks Rank of the individual companies within each of these sectors.
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. Quanta Services is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).
Within the past quarter, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for PWR's full-year earnings has moved 3% higher. This signals that analyst sentiment is improving and the stock's earnings outlook is more positive.
Based on the most recent data, PWR has returned 30.1% so far this year. Meanwhile, the Construction sector has returned an average of 15.6% on a year-to-date basis. This means that Quanta Services is performing better than its sector in terms of year-to-date returns.
Another Construction stock, which has outperformed the sector so far this year, is Sterling Infrastructure (STRL). The stock has returned 41.9% year-to-date.
In Sterling Infrastructure's case, the consensus EPS estimate for the current year increased 2.5% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).
Looking more specifically, Quanta Services belongs to the Engineering - R and D Services industry, a group that includes 19 individual stocks and currently sits at #43 in the Zacks Industry Rank. This group has gained an average of 21.4% so far this year, so PWR is performing better in this area. Sterling Infrastructure is also part of the same industry.
Investors interested in the Construction sector may want to keep a close eye on Quanta Services and Sterling Infrastructure as they attempt to continue their solid performance.
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Quanta Services, Inc. (PWR): Free Stock Analysis Report Sterling Infrastructure, Inc. (STRL): Free Stock Analysis ReportThis article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).
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