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Is Graphic Packaging Holding Company (GPK) Stock Outpacing Its Industrial Products Peers This Year?

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Investors interested in Industrial Products stocks should always be looking to find the best-performing companies in the group. 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? By taking a look at the stock's year-to-date performance in comparison to its Industrial Products peers, we might be able to answer that 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 #1. 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. Graphic Packaging is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #1 (Strong Buy).

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for GPK's full-year earnings has moved 18.6% higher within the past quarter. This signals that analyst sentiment is improving and the stock's earnings outlook is more positive.

Our latest available data shows that GPK has returned about 15.5% since the start of the calendar year. Meanwhile, the Industrial Products sector has returned an average of 1.1% on a year-to-date basis. This means that Graphic Packaging is outperforming the sector as a whole 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 21.4%.

The consensus estimate for W.W. Grainger's current year EPS has increased 8.3% 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 #80 in the Zacks Industry Rank. On average, stocks in this group have lost 1.8% this year, meaning that GPK is performing better in terms of year-to-date returns.

In contrast, W.W. Grainger falls under the Industrial Services industry. Currently, this industry has 23 stocks and is ranked #97. Since the beginning of the year, the industry has moved +14.2%.

Graphic Packaging and W.W. Grainger could continue their solid performance, so investors interested in Industrial Products stocks should continue to pay close attention to these stocks.


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