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Is H&R Block (HRB) Outperforming Other Consumer Discretionary Stocks This Year?

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For those looking to find strong Consumer Discretionary stocks, it is prudent to search for companies in the group that are outperforming their peers. H&R Block (HRB - Free Report) 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 Consumer Discretionary sector should help us answer this question.

H&R Block is one of 288 individual stocks in the Consumer Discretionary sector. Collectively, these companies sit at #15 in the Zacks Sector Rank. The Zacks Sector Rank gauges the strength of our 16 individual sector groups by measuring the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks within the groups.

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. H&R Block is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for HRB's full-year earnings has moved 3.1% higher within the past quarter. This means that analyst sentiment is stronger and the stock's earnings outlook is improving.

According to our latest data, HRB has moved about 90.2% on a year-to-date basis. Meanwhile, the Consumer Discretionary sector has returned an average of -33.7% on a year-to-date basis. This means that H&R Block is outperforming the sector as a whole this year.

Another stock in the Consumer Discretionary sector, Target Hospitality (TH - Free Report) , has outperformed the sector so far this year. The stock's year-to-date return is 270.2%.

In Target Hospitality's case, the consensus EPS estimate for the current year increased 1273.3% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).

Looking more specifically, H&R Block belongs to the Consumer Services - Miscellaneous industry, a group that includes 14 individual stocks and currently sits at #84 in the Zacks Industry Rank. On average, stocks in this group have lost 9.6% this year, meaning that HRB is performing better in terms of year-to-date returns.

On the other hand, Target Hospitality belongs to the Leisure and Recreation Services industry. This 31-stock industry is currently ranked #169. The industry has moved -33.5% year to date.

H&R Block and Target Hospitality could continue their solid performance, so investors interested in Consumer Discretionary stocks should continue to pay close attention to these stocks.


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