Yahoo Finance Are Business Services Stocks Lagging Fiserv (FISV) This Year?
Investors interested in Business Services stocks should always be looking to find the best-performing companies in the group. Has Fiserv (FISV) 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.
Fiserv is one of 335 individual stocks in the Business Services sector. Collectively, these companies sit at #4 in the Zacks Sector Rank. 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 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. Fiserv is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for FISV's full-year earnings has moved 1.9% higher within the past quarter. This is a sign of improving analyst sentiment and a positive earnings outlook trend.
Based on the latest available data, FISV has gained about 18% so far this year. Meanwhile, the Business Services sector has returned an average of 1.2% on a year-to-date basis. This means that Fiserv is outperforming the sector as a whole this year.
Another Business Services stock, which has outperformed the sector so far this year, is Interpublic Group (IPG). The stock has returned 7% year-to-date.
The consensus estimate for Interpublic Group's current year EPS has increased 5.9% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).
Breaking things down more, Fiserv is a member of the Financial Transaction Services industry, which includes 37 individual companies and currently sits at #46 in the Zacks Industry Rank. Stocks in this group have gained about 7.6% so far this year, so FISV is performing better this group in terms of year-to-date returns.
Interpublic Group, however, belongs to the Advertising and Marketing industry. Currently, this 16-stock industry is ranked #53. The industry has moved +7.1% so far this year.
Fiserv and Interpublic Group 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
Fiserv, Inc. (FISV) : Free Stock Analysis Report
Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. (The) (IPG) : Free Stock Analysis Report
