Are Industrial Products Stocks Lagging AZZ (AZZ) This Year?

The Industrial Products group has plenty of great stocks, but investors should always be looking for companies that are outperforming their peers. Is AZZ (AZZ) one of those stocks right now? By taking a look at the stock's year-to-date performance in comparison to its Industrial Products peers, we might be able to answer that question.AZZ is a member of our Industrial Products group, which includes 190 different companies and currently sits at #9 in 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).The Zacks Consensus Estimate for AZZ's full-year earnings has moved 0.5% higher within the past quarter. This shows that analyst sentiment has improved and the company's earnings outlook is stronger.Our latest available data shows that AZZ has returned about 29.4% since the start of the calendar year. At the same time, Industrial Products stocks have gained an average of 6.6%. This means that AZZ is performing better than its sector in terms of year-to-date returns.Esco Technologies (ESE) is another Industrial Products stock that has outperformed the sector so far this year. Since the beginning of the year, the stock has returned 45.2%.For Esco Technologies, the consensus EPS estimate for the current year has increased 6.5% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy).To break things down more, AZZ belongs to the Manufacturing - Electronics industry, a group that includes 15 individual companies and currently sits at #42 in the Zacks Industry Rank. Stocks in this group have gained about 7% so far this year, so AZZ is performing better this group in terms of year-to-date returns. Esco Technologies is also part of the same industry.Investors with an interest in Industrial Products stocks should continue to track AZZ and Esco Technologies. These stocks will be looking to continue their solid performance.5 Stocks Set to DoubleEach was handpicked by a Zacks expert as the favorite stock to gain +100% or more in the months ahead. They includeStock #1: A Disruptive Force with Notable Growth and ResilienceStock #2: Bullish Signs Signaling to Buy the DipStock #3: One of the Most Compelling Investments in the MarketStock #4: Leader In a Red-Hot Industry Poised for GrowthStock #5: Modern Omni-Channel Platform Coiled to SpringMost of the stocks in this report are flying under Wall Street radar, which provides a great opportunity to get in on the ground floor. While not all picks can be winners, previous recommendations have soared +171%, +209% and +232%.Download Atomic Opportunity: Nuclear Energy's Comeback free today.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 AZZ Inc. (AZZ): Free Stock Analysis Report ESCO Technologies Inc. (ESE): Free Stock Analysis ReportThis article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).Zacks Investment ResearchWeiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Zacks Weiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Zacks