For those looking to find strong Construction stocks, it is prudent to search for companies in the group that are outperforming their peers. Great Lakes Dredge & Dock (GLDD) 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.
Great Lakes Dredge & Dock is a member of our Construction group, which includes 88 different companies and currently sits at #10 in 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 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. Great Lakes Dredge & Dock is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #1 (Strong Buy).
Over the past three months, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for GLDD's full-year earnings has moved 35% higher. This means that analyst sentiment is stronger and the stock's earnings outlook is improving.
Based on the most recent data, GLDD has returned 2.5% so far this year. At the same time, Construction stocks have lost an average of 2.9%. This means that Great Lakes Dredge & Dock is performing better than its sector in terms of year-to-date returns.
Babcock International Group PLC (BCKIY) is another Construction stock that has outperformed the sector so far this year. Since the beginning of the year, the stock has returned 141.7%.
In Babcock International Group PLC's case, the consensus EPS estimate for the current year increased 9.6% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).
Looking more specifically, Great Lakes Dredge & Dock belongs to the Building Products - Heavy Construction industry, a group that includes 10 individual stocks and currently sits at #2 in the Zacks Industry Rank. This group has gained an average of 5.2% so far this year, so GLDD is slightly underperforming its industry in this area.
In contrast, Babcock International Group PLC falls under the Engineering - R and D Services industry. Currently, this industry has 17 stocks and is ranked #65. Since the beginning of the year, the industry has moved +2.1%.
Investors interested in the Construction sector may want to keep a close eye on Great Lakes Dredge & Dock and Babcock International Group PLC as they attempt to continue their solid performance.
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Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Corporation (GLDD): Free Stock Analysis Report Babcock International Group PLC (BCKIY): Free Stock Analysis ReportThis article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).
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