For those looking to find strong Medical stocks, it is prudent to search for companies in the group that are outperforming their peers. Has Applied Therapeutics Inc. (APLT) been one of those stocks this year? Let's take a closer look at the stock's year-to-date performance to find out.

Applied Therapeutics Inc. is a member of our Medical group, which includes 1016 different companies and currently sits at #6 in the Zacks Sector Rank. 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 is a proven system that emphasizes earnings estimates and estimate revisions, highlighting a variety of stocks that are displaying the right characteristics to beat the market over the next one to three months. Applied Therapeutics Inc. is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).

Over the past three months, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for APLT's full-year earnings has moved 18.6% higher. This is a sign of improving analyst sentiment and a positive earnings outlook trend.

Based on the most recent data, APLT has returned 129.3% so far this year. In comparison, Medical companies have returned an average of 9.8%. This means that Applied Therapeutics Inc. is performing better than its sector in terms of year-to-date returns.

Cardinal Health (CAH) is another Medical stock that has outperformed the sector so far this year. Since the beginning of the year, the stock has returned 11%.

Over the past three months, Cardinal Health's consensus EPS estimate for the current year has increased 0.9%. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).

Breaking things down more, Applied Therapeutics Inc. is a member of the Medical - Biomedical and Genetics industry, which includes 495 individual companies and currently sits at #80 in the Zacks Industry Rank. On average, this group has gained an average of 0.1% so far this year, meaning that APLT is performing better in terms of year-to-date returns.

In contrast, Cardinal Health falls under the Medical - Dental Supplies industry. Currently, this industry has 15 stocks and is ranked #146. Since the beginning of the year, the industry has moved +0.7%.

Going forward, investors interested in Medical stocks should continue to pay close attention to Applied Therapeutics Inc. and Cardinal Health as they could maintain their solid performance.

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