The Retail-Wholesale group has plenty of great stocks, but investors should always be looking for companies that are outperforming their peers. Is Cheesecake Factory (CAKE) one of those stocks right now? By taking a look at the stock's year-to-date performance in comparison to its Retail-Wholesale peers, we might be able to answer that question.

Cheesecake Factory is one of 212 companies in the Retail-Wholesale group. The Retail-Wholesale group currently sits at #2 within the Zacks Sector Rank. The Zacks Sector Rank considers 16 different sector groups. The average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks within the groups is measured, and the sectors are listed from best to worst.

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. Cheesecake Factory is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for CAKE's full-year earnings has moved 1.7% higher within the past quarter. This is a sign of improving analyst sentiment and a positive earnings outlook trend.

Based on the most recent data, CAKE has returned 15.9% so far this year. Meanwhile, the Retail-Wholesale sector has returned an average of 6.9% on a year-to-date basis. As we can see, Cheesecake Factory is performing better than its sector in the calendar year.

One other Retail-Wholesale stock that has outperformed the sector so far this year is Carvana (CVNA). The stock is up 21.8% year-to-date.

For Carvana, the consensus EPS estimate for the current year has increased 7.1% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy).

Looking more specifically, Cheesecake Factory belongs to the Retail - Restaurants industry, a group that includes 39 individual stocks and currently sits at #71 in the Zacks Industry Rank. On average, stocks in this group have gained 5.9% this year, meaning that CAKE is performing better in terms of year-to-date returns.

Carvana, however, belongs to the Internet - Commerce industry. Currently, this 37-stock industry is ranked #55. The industry has moved +8.7% so far this year.

Investors with an interest in Retail-Wholesale stocks should continue to track Cheesecake Factory and Carvana. These stocks will be looking to continue their solid performance.

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