Investors interested in Industrial Products stocks should always be looking to find the best-performing companies in the group. Bodycote (BYPLF) 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? Let's take a closer look at the stock's year-to-date performance to find out.

Bodycote is one of 218 individual stocks in the Industrial Products sector. Collectively, these companies sit at #3 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 emphasizes earnings estimates and estimate revisions to find stocks with improving earnings outlooks. This system has a long record of success, and these stocks tend to be on track to beat the market over the next one to three months. Bodycote is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).

Over the past 90 days, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for BYPLF's full-year earnings has moved 0.8% higher. This signals that analyst sentiment is improving and the stock's earnings outlook is more positive.

According to our latest data, BYPLF has moved about 22.6% on a year-to-date basis. Meanwhile, the Industrial Products sector has returned an average of 1.4% on a year-to-date basis. This means that Bodycote is outperforming the sector as a whole this year.

Another Industrial Products stock, which has outperformed the sector so far this year, is Century Aluminum (CENX). The stock has returned 53.6% year-to-date.

Over the past three months, Century Aluminum's consensus EPS estimate for the current year has increased 487.5%. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).

Looking more specifically, Bodycote belongs to the Manufacturing - Thermal Products industry, which includes 4 individual stocks and currently sits at #22 in the Zacks Industry Rank. Stocks in this group have gained about 7.4% so far this year, so BYPLF is performing better this group in terms of year-to-date returns.

In contrast, Century Aluminum falls under the Metal Products - Procurement and Fabrication industry. Currently, this industry has 11 stocks and is ranked #19. Since the beginning of the year, the industry has moved +6.1%.

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

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