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Is James Hardie Industries (JHX) Stock Outpacing Its Construction Peers 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. Has James Hardie (JHX - Free Report) been one of those stocks this year? A quick glance at the company's year-to-date performance in comparison to the rest of the Construction sector should help us answer this question.

James Hardie is a member of the Construction sector. This group includes 100 individual stocks and currently holds a Zacks Sector Rank of #1. 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 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. James Hardie is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #1 (Strong Buy).

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for JHX's full-year earnings has moved 9.7% higher within the past quarter. This shows that analyst sentiment has improved and the company's earnings outlook is stronger.

Based on the most recent data, JHX has returned 49.7% so far this year. Meanwhile, the Construction sector has returned an average of 31.7% on a year-to-date basis. As we can see, James Hardie is performing better than its sector in the calendar year.

One other Construction stock that has outperformed the sector so far this year is KB Home (KBH - Free Report) . The stock is up 66.3% year-to-date.

For KB Home, the consensus EPS estimate for the current year has increased 22.7% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy).

Breaking things down more, James Hardie is a member of the Building Products - Miscellaneous industry, which includes 28 individual companies and currently sits at #20 in the Zacks Industry Rank. On average, this group has gained an average of 31.9% so far this year, meaning that JHX is performing better in terms of year-to-date returns.

On the other hand, KB Home belongs to the Building Products - Home Builders industry. This 19-stock industry is currently ranked #12. The industry has moved +51.1% year to date.

Investors interested in the Construction sector may want to keep a close eye on James Hardie and KB Home as they attempt to continue their solid performance.


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