The Consumer Staples group has plenty of great stocks, but investors should always be looking for companies that are outperforming their peers. Vita Coco Company, Inc. (COCO) 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.

Vita Coco Company, Inc. is one of 180 individual stocks in the Consumer Staples sector. Collectively, these companies sit at #10 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 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. Vita Coco Company, Inc. is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).

Over the past 90 days, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for COCO's full-year earnings has moved 0.6% higher. This shows that analyst sentiment has improved and the company's earnings outlook is stronger.

Based on the latest available data, COCO has gained about 1.8% so far this year. In comparison, Consumer Staples companies have returned an average of 0%. This shows that Vita Coco Company, Inc. is outperforming its peers so far this year.

One other Consumer Staples stock that has outperformed the sector so far this year is Marine Harvest ASA (MHGVY). The stock is up 13% year-to-date.

The consensus estimate for Marine Harvest ASA's current year EPS has increased 6.2% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy).

Looking more specifically, Vita Coco Company, Inc. belongs to the Beverages - Soft drinks industry, which includes 16 individual stocks and currently sits at #143 in the Zacks Industry Rank. On average, stocks in this group have gained 8.8% this year, meaning that COCO is slightly underperforming its industry in terms of year-to-date returns.

Marine Harvest ASA, however, belongs to the Food - Miscellaneous industry. Currently, this 43-stock industry is ranked #178. The industry has moved +0.7% so far this year.

Investors interested in the Consumer Staples sector may want to keep a close eye on Vita Coco Company, Inc. and Marine Harvest ASA as they attempt to continue their solid performance.

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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).

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