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Are Industrial Products Stocks Lagging ESCO Technologies (ESE) This Year?

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For those looking to find strong Industrial Products stocks, it is prudent to search for companies in the group that are outperforming their peers. Esco Technologies (ESE - 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? Let's take a closer look at the stock's year-to-date performance to find out.

Esco Technologies is one of 189 individual stocks in the Industrial Products sector. Collectively, these companies sit at #1 in the Zacks Sector Rank. The Zacks Sector Rank considers 16 different sector groups. The average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks within the groups is measured, and the sectors are listed from best to worst.

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. Esco Technologies is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #1 (Strong Buy).

Over the past 90 days, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for ESE's full-year earnings has moved 6.5% higher. This shows that analyst sentiment has improved and the company's earnings outlook is stronger.

Our latest available data shows that ESE has returned about 46.7% since the start of the calendar year. Meanwhile, stocks in the Industrial Products group have gained about 8.7% on average. This means that Esco Technologies is performing better than its sector in terms of year-to-date returns.

Another stock in the Industrial Products sector, AZZ (AZZ - Free Report) , has outperformed the sector so far this year. The stock's year-to-date return is 36.3%.

In AZZ's case, the consensus EPS estimate for the current year increased 4.9% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy).

To break things down more, Esco Technologies belongs to the Manufacturing - Electronics industry, a group that includes 15 individual companies and currently sits at #39 in the Zacks Industry Rank. This group has gained an average of 13.8% so far this year, so ESE is performing better in this area. AZZ is also part of the same industry.

Investors with an interest in Industrial Products stocks should continue to track Esco Technologies and AZZ. These stocks will be looking to continue their solid performance.


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