Has Graphic Packaging Holding Company (GPK) Outpaced Other Industrial Products Stocks This Year?

GWW GPK

The Industrial Products group has plenty of great stocks, but investors should always be looking for companies that are outperforming their peers. Graphic Packaging (GPK - Free Report) 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.

Graphic Packaging is a member of the Industrial Products sector. This group includes 217 individual stocks and currently holds a Zacks Sector Rank of #2. 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 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. Graphic Packaging is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #1 (Strong Buy).

Over the past three months, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for GPK's full-year earnings has moved 10.3% higher. This shows that analyst sentiment has improved and the company's earnings outlook is stronger.

According to our latest data, GPK has moved about 18.9% on a year-to-date basis. In comparison, Industrial Products companies have returned an average of 4.1%. This shows that Graphic Packaging is outperforming its peers so far this year.

Another stock in the Industrial Products sector, W.W. Grainger (GWW - Free Report) , has outperformed the sector so far this year. The stock's year-to-date return is 26.7%.

The consensus estimate for W.W. Grainger's current year EPS has increased 7.5% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).

Breaking things down more, Graphic Packaging is a member of the Containers - Paper and Packaging industry, which includes 11 individual companies and currently sits at #56 in the Zacks Industry Rank. This group has lost an average of 1.6% so far this year, so GPK is performing better in this area.

On the other hand, W.W. Grainger belongs to the Industrial Services industry. This 23-stock industry is currently ranked #107. The industry has moved +20.5% year to date.

Investors with an interest in Industrial Products stocks should continue to track Graphic Packaging and W.W. Grainger. These stocks will be looking to continue their solid performance.

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