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Are Construction Stocks Lagging Sterling Infrastructure, Inc. (STRL) This Year?

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The Construction group has plenty of great stocks, but investors should always be looking for companies that are outperforming their peers. Sterling Infrastructure (STRL - 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? Let's take a closer look at the stock's year-to-date performance to find out.

Sterling Infrastructure is one of 98 companies in the Construction group. The Construction group currently sits at #11 within the Zacks Sector Rank. The Zacks Sector Rank considers 16 different sector groups. The average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks within the groups is measured, and the sectors are listed from best to worst.

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. Sterling Infrastructure is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).

Within the past quarter, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for STRL's full-year earnings has moved 1.8% higher. This means that analyst sentiment is stronger and the stock's earnings outlook is improving.

Our latest available data shows that STRL has returned about 24.6% since the start of the calendar year. In comparison, Construction companies have returned an average of 11.5%. This shows that Sterling Infrastructure is outperforming its peers so far this year.

Another Construction stock, which has outperformed the sector so far this year, is United Rentals (URI - Free Report) . The stock has returned 32.4% year-to-date.

The consensus estimate for United Rentals' current year EPS has increased 13.3% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).

Looking more specifically, Sterling Infrastructure belongs to the Engineering - R and D Services industry, which includes 21 individual stocks and currently sits at #82 in the Zacks Industry Rank. Stocks in this group have gained about 11.8% so far this year, so STRL is performing better this group in terms of year-to-date returns.

On the other hand, United Rentals belongs to the Building Products - Miscellaneous industry. This 27-stock industry is currently ranked #96. The industry has moved +20.2% year to date.

Investors interested in the Construction sector may want to keep a close eye on Sterling Infrastructure and United Rentals as they attempt to continue their solid performance.


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