Investors focused on the Consumer Staples space have likely heard of Unilever (UL Quick QuoteUL - Free Report) , but is the stock performing well in comparison to the rest of its sector peers? A quick glance at the company's year-to-date performance in comparison to the rest of the Consumer Staples sector should help us answer this question.

Unilever is one of 165 individual stocks in the Consumer Staples sector. Collectively, these companies sit at #12 in the Zacks Sector Rank. The Zacks Sector Rank gauges the strength of our 16 individual sector groups by measuring the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks within the groups.

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. UL is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).

Within the past quarter, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for UL's full-year earnings has moved 6.72% higher. This means that analyst sentiment is stronger and the stock's earnings outlook is improving.

Based on the latest available data, UL has gained about 18.55% so far this year. In comparison, Consumer Staples companies have returned an average of 15.77%. This shows that Unilever is outperforming its peers so far this year.

Looking more specifically, UL belongs to the Soap and Cleaning Materials industry, a group that includes 8 individual stocks and currently sits at #104 in the Zacks Industry Rank. On average, stocks in this group have gained 17.01% this year, meaning that UL is performing better in terms of year-to-date returns.

Investors in the Consumer Staples sector will want to keep a close eye on UL as it attempts to continue its solid performance.