Strong jobs data was the bright spot for the U.S. economy through 2015. December provided encouraging job additions which exceeded most expectations. This assuaged several worried market watchers whose fears have been heightened by recent headwinds.

Professional and business services provided the highest number of job additions in December. In fact, companies from this sector contributed heavily to the increase in jobs throughout last year. This makes them good bets in the days ahead and it would be prudent to add such stocks to your portfolio.

Encouraging Job Additions in 2015

The economy experienced 2.65 million job additions last year. This makes it the best year for hiring in around 16 years. Most of the gains were made during the final quarter of the year. On an average, 284,000 jobs were added each month during the October-December period. This is significantly higher than the monthly average of 200,000 for the rest of the year.

Job additions surpassed all expectations in December, coming in at 292,000. This was significantly higher than the 200,000 additions most economists had estimated for the month. Meanwhile, the unemployment rate remained at a seven and a half year low of 5% for the third successive month.

Professional and business services accounted for 73,000 job additions in December. These companies contributed the largest number of jobs during the month and had remained a major employer through the year. Healthcare and construction were also strong areas of job growth during December.

Lingering Concerns

For the moment, wage growth remains a major concern. In December, average hourly wage declined by a cent to $25.24. However, the metric increased by 2.5% over last year. This is lower than the rate of growth experienced before the recession of 2008.

At the same time, the pace of wage increases is marginally higher than what has been experienced during most of the recovery period. Meanwhile, the labor participation rate was nearly flat in December at 62.6%. This metric has hardly changed throughout last year.

The mining industry is a major cause of worry. The slump in oil prices is weighing down on the sector with 8,000 mining jobs lost in December. Nearly 130,000 job losses were experienced by the sector over the last year. This is in stark contrast to the 41,000 job additions during 2014. 

Our Choices

Services companies contributed to nearly 90% of the jobs created by the U.S. economy last year. Staffing firms gained from the spurt in job growth while technology related services also had a decent year. An improving employment scenario means electronic and financial services are also expected to provide significant employment.

Stocks from this area are expected to experience strong growth and you would do no wrong to pick those with encouraging metrics. Our selection is also backed by a good Zacks Growth Score and Zacks Rank.

We narrowed down our choices with the help of our new style score system.

Our research shows that stocks with a Growth Style Score of ‘A’ or ‘B’ when combined with a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) or Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) offer the best investment opportunities in the growth investing space.

Global Payments Inc. (GPN - Snapshot Report) offers payment solutions for transactions made using debit and credit cards as well as checks. It also provides solutions for electronic payments.

Global Payments holds a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) and has a Growth Style Score of ‘A.’ The company has expected earnings growth of 17.7% for the current year. The earnings estimate for the current year has increased by 0.1% over the last 30 days.  

RealD Inc. (RLD - Snapshot Report) is a global licensor of stereoscopic (three-dimensional), or 3D, technologies.

RealD holds a Zacks Rank #2 and has a Growth Style Score of ‘A’. The company has expected earnings growth of more than 100% for the current year. The earnings estimate for the current year has increased by 26.7% over the last 30 days.  

The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. (IPG - Analyst Report) together with its subsidiaries provides advertising and marketing services worldwide.

Apart from a Zacks Rank #2, Interpublic Group has a Growth Style Score of ‘B.’ The company has expected earnings growth of 11.1% for the current year.

General Employment Enterprises Inc. (JOB - Snapshot Report) provides professional staffing services.

General Employment Enterprises holds a Zacks Rank #2 and has a Growth Style Score of ‘A.’ The company has expected earnings growth of more than 100% for the current year. The earnings estimate for the current year has increased by 90% over the last 30 days. 

Cross Country Healthcare, Inc. (CCRN - Snapshot Report) is a provider of healthcare staffing services.

Apart from a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), Cross Country Healthcare has a Growth Style Score of ‘A.’ The company has expected earnings growth of 26.9% for the current year.