For those looking to find strong Aerospace stocks, it is prudent to search for companies in the group that are outperforming their peers. Leidos (LDOS) 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.

Leidos is one of 46 companies in the Aerospace group. The Aerospace group currently sits at #4 within 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 is a proven model that highlights a variety of stocks with the right characteristics to outperform the market over the next one to three months. The system emphasizes earnings estimate revisions and favors companies with improving earnings outlooks. Leidos is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #1 (Strong Buy).

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for LDOS' full-year earnings has moved 12.1% higher within the past quarter. This shows that analyst sentiment has improved and the company's earnings outlook is stronger.

According to our latest data, LDOS has moved about 38.7% on a year-to-date basis. At the same time, Aerospace stocks have gained an average of 3.1%. This means that Leidos is performing better than its sector in terms of year-to-date returns.

Another stock in the Aerospace sector, Triumph Group (TGI), has outperformed the sector so far this year. The stock's year-to-date return is 12%.

Over the past three months, Triumph Group's consensus EPS estimate for the current year has increased 45.8%. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy).

Looking more specifically, Leidos belongs to the Aerospace - Defense industry, which includes 22 individual stocks and currently sits at #139 in the Zacks Industry Rank. On average, this group has lost an average of 7.9% so far this year, meaning that LDOS is performing better in terms of year-to-date returns.

In contrast, Triumph Group falls under the Aerospace - Defense Equipment industry. Currently, this industry has 23 stocks and is ranked #46. Since the beginning of the year, the industry has moved +37.9%.

Investors interested in the Aerospace sector may want to keep a close eye on Leidos and Triumph Group as they attempt to continue their solid performance.

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