Investors focused on the Oils-Energy space have likely heard of Pioneer Natural Resources (PXD Quick QuotePXD - Free Report) , but is the stock performing well in comparison to the rest of its sector peers? Let's take a closer look at the stock's year-to-date performance to find out.

Pioneer Natural Resources is a member of the Oils-Energy sector. This group includes 311 individual stocks and currently holds a Zacks Sector Rank of #4. 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 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. PXD is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).

Over the past 90 days, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for PXD's full-year earnings has moved 23.85% higher. This is a sign of improving analyst sentiment and a positive earnings outlook trend.

Our latest available data shows that PXD has returned about 9.82% since the start of the calendar year. At the same time, Oils-Energy stocks have gained an average of 4.66%. As we can see, Pioneer Natural Resources is performing better than its sector in the calendar year.

Looking more specifically, PXD belongs to the Oil and Gas - Exploration and Production - United States industry, which includes 74 individual stocks and currently sits at #67 in the Zacks Industry Rank. This group has gained an average of 0.26% so far this year, so PXD is performing better in this area.

Investors with an interest in Oils-Energy stocks should continue to track PXD. The stock will be looking to continue its solid performance.