For those looking to find strong Business Services stocks, it is prudent to search for companies in the group that are outperforming their peers. Booz Allen Hamilton (BAH) 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? 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.

Booz Allen Hamilton is a member of the Business Services sector. This group includes 312 individual stocks and currently holds a Zacks Sector Rank of #6. The Zacks Sector Rank gauges the strength of our 16 individual sector groups by measuring the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks within the groups.

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. Booz Allen Hamilton is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).

Over the past three months, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for BAH's full-year earnings has moved 0.9% higher. This is a sign of improving analyst sentiment and a positive earnings outlook trend.

Based on the latest available data, BAH has gained about 30.2% so far this year. Meanwhile, the Business Services sector has returned an average of 17.5% on a year-to-date basis. This shows that Booz Allen Hamilton is outperforming its peers so far this year.

Another Business Services stock, which has outperformed the sector so far this year, is ABM Industries (ABM). The stock has returned 18.6% year-to-date.

For ABM Industries, the consensus EPS estimate for the current year has increased 2.1% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).

Looking more specifically, Booz Allen Hamilton belongs to the Government Services industry, a group that includes 3 individual stocks and currently sits at #10 in the Zacks Industry Rank. This group has gained an average of 24.3% so far this year, so BAH is performing better in this area.

ABM Industries, however, belongs to the Building Products - Maintenance Service industry. Currently, this 3-stock industry is ranked #10. The industry has moved +9.6% so far this year.

Investors interested in the Business Services sector may want to keep a close eye on Booz Allen Hamilton and ABM Industries as they attempt to continue their solid performance.

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