The Industrial Products group has plenty of great stocks, but investors should always be looking for companies that are outperforming their peers. AZZ (AZZ) 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 Industrial Products sector should help us answer this question.

AZZ is one of 192 companies in the Industrial Products group. The Industrial Products group currently sits at #10 within the Zacks Sector Rank. The Zacks Sector Rank includes 16 different groups and is listed in order from best to worst in terms of the average Zacks Rank of the individual companies within each of these sectors.

The Zacks Rank is a successful stock-picking model that emphasizes earnings estimates and estimate revisions. The system highlights a number of different stocks that could be poised to outperform the broader market over the next one to three months. AZZ is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).

Over the past 90 days, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for AZZ's full-year earnings has moved 0.1% higher. This is a sign of improving analyst sentiment and a positive earnings outlook trend.

Based on the latest available data, AZZ has gained about 2.8% so far this year. Meanwhile, stocks in the Industrial Products group have lost about 11.4% on average. This means that AZZ is performing better than its sector in terms of year-to-date returns.

Another stock in the Industrial Products sector, Energy Recovery (ERII), has outperformed the sector so far this year. The stock's year-to-date return is 3.3%.

The consensus estimate for Energy Recovery's current year EPS has increased 3.3% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).

Breaking things down more, AZZ is a member of the Manufacturing - Electronics industry, which includes 17 individual companies and currently sits at #34 in the Zacks Industry Rank. On average, stocks in this group have lost 15.7% this year, meaning that AZZ is performing better in terms of year-to-date returns.

On the other hand, Energy Recovery belongs to the Pollution Control industry. This 7-stock industry is currently ranked #198. The industry has moved -15.6% year to date.

Investors interested in the Industrial Products sector may want to keep a close eye on AZZ and Energy Recovery as they attempt to continue their solid performance.

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

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