For those looking to find strong Industrial Products stocks, it is prudent to search for companies in the group that are outperforming their peers. Century Aluminum (CENX) 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.

Century Aluminum is a member of the Industrial Products sector. This group includes 213 individual stocks and currently holds a Zacks Sector Rank of #13. 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 proven model that highlights a variety of stocks with the right characteristics to outperform the market over the next one to three months. The system emphasizes earnings estimate revisions and favors companies with improving earnings outlooks. Century Aluminum is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #1 (Strong Buy).

Within the past quarter, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for CENX's full-year earnings has moved 700% higher. This means that analyst sentiment is stronger and the stock's earnings outlook is improving.

Based on the latest available data, CENX has gained about 82.5% so far this year. At the same time, Industrial Products stocks have gained an average of 21%. This means that Century Aluminum is performing better than its sector in terms of year-to-date returns.

Kawasaki Heavy Industries Ltd. (KWHIY) is another Industrial Products stock that has outperformed the sector so far this year. Since the beginning of the year, the stock has returned 102.8%.

The consensus estimate for Kawasaki Heavy Industries Ltd.'s current year EPS has increased 7.8% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).

Looking more specifically, Century Aluminum belongs to the Metal Products - Procurement and Fabrication industry, a group that includes 11 individual stocks and currently sits at #73 in the Zacks Industry Rank. On average, this group has gained an average of 56% so far this year, meaning that CENX is performing better in terms of year-to-date returns.

In contrast, Kawasaki Heavy Industries Ltd. falls under the Manufacturing - General Industrial industry. Currently, this industry has 42 stocks and is ranked #142. Since the beginning of the year, the industry has moved +19.9%.