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Is Cross Country Healthcare (CCRN) Outperforming Other Business Services Stocks This Year?

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For those looking to find strong Business Services stocks, it is prudent to search for companies in the group that are outperforming their peers. Is Cross Country Healthcare (CCRN - Free Report) one of those stocks right now? 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.

Cross Country Healthcare is a member of the Business Services sector. This group includes 333 individual stocks and currently holds a Zacks Sector Rank of #7. 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 emphasizes earnings estimates and estimate revisions to find stocks with improving earnings outlooks. This system has a long record of success, and these stocks tend to be on track to beat the market over the next one to three months. Cross Country Healthcare is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #1 (Strong Buy).

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for CCRN's full-year earnings has moved 7.5% 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, CCRN has gained about 22.4% so far this year. At the same time, Business Services stocks have lost an average of 30.9%. This means that Cross Country Healthcare is outperforming the sector as a whole this year.

Another Business Services stock, which has outperformed the sector so far this year, is CRA International (CRAI - Free Report) . The stock has returned 25.9% year-to-date.

Over the past three months, CRA International's consensus EPS estimate for the current year has increased 9.9%. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy).

To break things down more, Cross Country Healthcare belongs to the Staffing Firms industry, a group that includes 18 individual companies and currently sits at #96 in the Zacks Industry Rank. On average, this group has lost an average of 20.6% so far this year, meaning that CCRN is performing better in terms of year-to-date returns.

In contrast, CRA International falls under the Consulting Services industry. Currently, this industry has 15 stocks and is ranked #43. Since the beginning of the year, the industry has moved -28.7%.

Cross Country Healthcare and CRA International could continue their solid performance, so investors interested in Business Services stocks should continue to pay close attention to these stocks.


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