The Business Services group has plenty of great stocks, but investors should always be looking for companies that are outperforming their peers. Byrna Technologies Inc. (BYRN) 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.

Byrna Technologies Inc. is a member of the Business Services sector. This group includes 309 individual stocks and currently holds a Zacks Sector Rank of #5. The Zacks Sector Rank considers 16 different groups, measuring the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks within the sector to gauge the strength of each group.

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. Byrna Technologies Inc. is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for BYRN's full-year earnings has moved 950% higher within the past quarter. This means that analyst sentiment is stronger and the stock's earnings outlook is improving.

Based on the latest available data, BYRN has gained about 129.7% so far this year. Meanwhile, stocks in the Business Services group have gained about 14.9% on average. As we can see, Byrna Technologies Inc. is performing better than its sector in the calendar year.

Another stock in the Business Services sector, CRA International (CRAI), has outperformed the sector so far this year. The stock's year-to-date return is 88.3%.

For CRA International, the consensus EPS estimate for the current year has increased 5.9% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).

To break things down more, Byrna Technologies Inc. belongs to the Technology Services industry, a group that includes 165 individual companies and currently sits at #70 in the Zacks Industry Rank. Stocks in this group have gained about 24.7% so far this year, so BYRN is performing better this group in terms of year-to-date returns.

On the other hand, CRA International belongs to the Consulting Services industry. This 13-stock industry is currently ranked #21. The industry has moved +12.7% year to date.

Going forward, investors interested in Business Services stocks should continue to pay close attention to Byrna Technologies Inc. and CRA International as they could maintain their solid performance.

Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report