Are Construction Stocks Lagging AECOM (ACM) This Year?

For those looking to find strong Construction stocks, it is prudent to search for companies in the group that are outperforming their peers. Aecom Technology (ACM) 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.

Aecom Technology is a member of the Construction sector. This group includes 88 individual stocks and currently holds a Zacks Sector Rank of #9. 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. Aecom Technology is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).

Over the past 90 days, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for ACM's full-year earnings has moved 1% higher. This shows that analyst sentiment has improved and the company's earnings outlook is stronger.

Our latest available data shows that ACM has returned about 5% since the start of the calendar year. Meanwhile, stocks in the Construction group have lost about 4.6% on average. This shows that Aecom Technology is outperforming its peers so far this year.

Another Construction stock, which has outperformed the sector so far this year, is Sterling Infrastructure (STRL). The stock has returned 31.4% year-to-date.

For Sterling Infrastructure, the consensus EPS estimate for the current year has increased 3.5% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).

Looking more specifically, Aecom Technology belongs to the Engineering - R and D Services industry, which includes 17 individual stocks and currently sits at #91 in the Zacks Industry Rank. On average, this group has gained an average of 5.2% so far this year, meaning that ACM is slightly underperforming its industry in terms of year-to-date returns. Sterling Infrastructure is also part of the same industry.

Going forward, investors interested in Construction stocks should continue to pay close attention to Aecom Technology and Sterling Infrastructure as they could maintain their solid performance.

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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).

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