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Are Construction Stocks Lagging MasTec (MTZ) 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 MasTec (MTZ - 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.

MasTec is a member of our Construction group, which includes 91 different companies and currently sits at #3 in 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 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. MasTec is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).

Within the past quarter, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for MTZ's full-year earnings has moved 5.2% higher. This means that analyst sentiment is stronger and the stock's earnings outlook is improving.

According to our latest data, MTZ has moved about 63.8% on a year-to-date basis. At the same time, Construction stocks have gained an average of 23.9%. This means that MasTec is performing better than its sector in terms of year-to-date returns.

Another Construction stock, which has outperformed the sector so far this year, is Granite Construction (GVA - Free Report) . The stock has returned 56.5% year-to-date.

The consensus estimate for Granite Construction's current year EPS has increased 10.1% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).

Looking more specifically, MasTec belongs to the Building Products - Heavy Construction industry, a group that includes 10 individual stocks and currently sits at #14 in the Zacks Industry Rank. Stocks in this group have gained about 78.4% so far this year, so MTZ is slightly underperforming its industry this group in terms of year-to-date returns. Granite Construction is also part of the same industry.

Investors interested in the Construction sector may want to keep a close eye on MasTec and Granite Construction as they attempt to continue their solid performance.


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