The Computer and Technology group has plenty of great stocks, but investors should always be looking for companies that are outperforming their peers. Has Microsoft (MSFT Quick QuoteMSFT - Free Report) been one of those stocks this year? Let's take a closer look at the stock's year-to-date performance to find out.

Microsoft is one of 659 individual stocks in the Computer and Technology sector. Collectively, these companies sit at #5 in the Zacks Sector Rank. 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 emphasizes earnings estimates and estimate revisions to find stocks with improving earnings outlooks. This system has a long record of success, and these stocks tend to be on track to beat the market over the next one to three months. MSFT is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for MSFT's full-year earnings has moved 4.24% higher within the past quarter. This is a sign of improving analyst sentiment and a positive earnings outlook trend.

Based on the latest available data, MSFT has gained about 28.82% so far this year. At the same time, Computer and Technology stocks have gained an average of 0.95%. As we can see, Microsoft is performing better than its sector in the calendar year.

Looking more specifically, MSFT belongs to the Computer - Software industry, a group that includes 50 individual stocks and currently sits at #98 in the Zacks Industry Rank. This group has gained an average of 22.59% so far this year, so MSFT is performing better in this area.

Investors in the Computer and Technology sector will want to keep a close eye on MSFT as it attempts to continue its solid performance.