5 Stocks Pushing The Services Sector Higher

Editor's Note: TheStreet ratings do not represent the views of TheStreet's staff or its contributors. Ratings are established by computer based on metrics for performance (which includes growth, stock performance, efficiency and valuation) and risk (volatility and solvency). Companies with poor cash flow or high debt levels tend to earn lower ratings in our model

All three major indices are trading up today with the Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) trading up 51 points (0.4%) at 14,033 as of Tuesday, Feb. 19, 2013, 11:50 AM ET. The NYSE advances/declines ratio sits at 1,948 issues advancing vs. 943 declining with 147 unchanged.

The Services sector currently sits up 0.5% versus the S&P 500, which is up 0.5%. Top gainers within the sector include OfficeMax (OMX), up 25.3%, Office Depot (ODP), up 14.5%, Staples (SPLS), up 12.0%, Robert Half International (RHI), up 3.4% and Best Buy (BBY), up 3.0%. On the negative front, top decliners within the sector include Group 1 Automotive (GPI), down 8.2%, Melco Crown Entertainment (MPEL), down 6.4%, Las Vegas Sands (LVS), down 3.2%, Ulta Salon Cosmetics & Fragrances (ULTA), down 2.8% and Genuine Parts Company (GPC), down 3.2%.

TheStreet Ratings group would like to highlight 5 stocks pushing the sector higher today:

5. Moody's Corporation (MCO) is one of the companies pushing the Services sector higher today. As of noon trading, Moody's Corporation is up $0.91 (1.9%) to $47.71 on average volume Thus far, 1.4 million shares of Moody's Corporation exchanged hands as compared to its average daily volume of 3.1 million shares. The stock has ranged in price between $46.65-$47.86 after having opened the day at $46.73 as compared to the previous trading day's close of $46.80.

Moody's Corporation, through its subsidiaries, provides credit ratings, research, and analysis covering fixed-income securities, other debt instruments, and the entities that issue such instruments in the global capital markets. Moody's Corporation has a market cap of $10.4 billion and is part of the diversified services industry. The company has a P/E ratio of 15.3, below the S&P 500 P/E ratio of 17.7. Shares are down 7.0% year to date as of the close of trading on Friday. Currently there are 3 analysts that rate Moody's Corporation a buy, no analysts rate it a sell, and 3 rate it a hold.

TheStreet Ratings rates Moody's Corporation as a buy. The company's strengths can be seen in multiple areas, such as its notable return on equity, robust revenue growth, impressive record of earnings per share growth, compelling growth in net income and expanding profit margins. We feel these strengths outweigh the fact that the company has had generally high debt management risk by most measures that we evaluated. Get the full Moody's Corporation Ratings Report now.

It's Official: Action Alerts PLUS beats the S&P 500 with Dividends Reinvested! Cramer and Link were up 16.72% in 2012. Were you? See what they are trading for 14-days FREE

1 2 3 4 5 Next › Last »

For more information on Yum Brands Inc click any of the following:

• Yum Brands Inc Stock Price

• Yum Brands Inc Analyst Ratings

• Yum Brands Inc Key Stats & Profile

• Yum Brands Inc Earnings

• Yum Brands Inc Ratio Comparison

• Yum Brands Inc Growth Rates

• Yum Brands Inc Balance Sheet

• Yum Brands Inc Cash Flow

• Yum Brands Inc Income Statement