The Medical group has plenty of great stocks, but investors should always be looking for companies that are outperforming their peers. Is Atossa Genetics Inc. (ATOS) one of those stocks right now? Let's take a closer look at the stock's year-to-date performance to find out.

Atossa Genetics Inc. is a member of our Medical group, which includes 1020 different companies and currently sits at #3 in the Zacks Sector Rank. The Zacks Sector Rank includes 16 different groups and is listed in order from best to worst in terms of the average Zacks Rank of the individual companies within each of these sectors.

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. Atossa Genetics Inc. is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).

Over the past three months, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for ATOS' full-year earnings has moved 3.1% higher. This is a sign of improving analyst sentiment and a positive earnings outlook trend.

Based on the most recent data, ATOS has returned 11.4% so far this year. Meanwhile, stocks in the Medical group have lost about 5% on average. This shows that Atossa Genetics Inc. is outperforming its peers so far this year.

One other Medical stock that has outperformed the sector so far this year is Gilead Sciences (GILD). The stock is up 12.4% year-to-date.

For Gilead Sciences, the consensus EPS estimate for the current year has increased 15.4% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).

Looking more specifically, Atossa Genetics Inc. belongs to the Medical - Instruments industry, which includes 86 individual stocks and currently sits at #49 in the Zacks Industry Rank. On average, stocks in this group have gained 3% this year, meaning that ATOS is performing better in terms of year-to-date returns.

In contrast, Gilead Sciences falls under the Medical - Biomedical and Genetics industry. Currently, this industry has 501 stocks and is ranked #68. Since the beginning of the year, the industry has moved -13.1%.

Atossa Genetics Inc. and Gilead Sciences could continue their solid performance, so investors interested in Medical stocks should continue to pay close attention to these stocks.

Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report

Atossa Genetics Inc. (ATOS) : Free Stock Analysis Report

Gilead Sciences, Inc. (GILD) : Free Stock Analysis Report

To read this article on Zacks.com click here.

Zacks Investment Research