The Business Services group has plenty of great stocks, but investors should always be looking for companies that are outperforming their peers. Fluent (FLNT) 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? A quick glance at the company's year-to-date performance in comparison to the rest of the Business Services sector should help us answer this question.
Fluent is one of 271 companies in the Business Services group. The Business Services group currently sits at #4 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 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. Fluent is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).
Over the past 90 days, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for FLNT's full-year earnings has moved 13.9% higher. This is a sign of improving analyst sentiment and a positive earnings outlook trend.
According to our latest data, FLNT has moved about 5.6% on a year-to-date basis. Meanwhile, stocks in the Business Services group have lost about 2.8% on average. As we can see, Fluent is performing better than its sector in the calendar year.
Another Business Services stock, which has outperformed the sector so far this year, is Stantec (STN). The stock has returned 12.3% year-to-date.
In Stantec's case, the consensus EPS estimate for the current year increased 8.4% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy).
Breaking things down more, Fluent is a member of the Advertising and Marketing industry, which includes 15 individual companies and currently sits at #38 in the Zacks Industry Rank. This group has lost an average of 18.1% so far this year, so FLNT is performing better in this area.
In contrast, Stantec falls under the Consulting Services industry. Currently, this industry has 13 stocks and is ranked #12. Since the beginning of the year, the industry has moved -7.4%.
Fluent and Stantec could continue their solid performance, so investors interested in Business Services stocks should continue to pay close attention to these stocks.
Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report
FLUENT, INC. (FLNT): Free Stock Analysis Report Stantec Inc. (STN): Free Stock Analysis ReportThis article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).
Zacks Investment Research
