For those looking to find strong Consumer Discretionary stocks, it is prudent to search for companies in the group that are outperforming their peers. Is Dolby Laboratories (DLB) one of those stocks right now? By taking a look at the stock's year-to-date performance in comparison to its Consumer Discretionary peers, we might be able to answer that question.

Dolby Laboratories is a member of our Consumer Discretionary group, which includes 268 different companies and currently sits at #12 in 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 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. Dolby Laboratories is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).

Within the past quarter, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for DLB's full-year earnings has moved 1.1% higher. This signals that analyst sentiment is improving and the stock's earnings outlook is more positive.

Based on the latest available data, DLB has gained about 4% so far this year. In comparison, Consumer Discretionary companies have returned an average of -4.8%. As we can see, Dolby Laboratories is performing better than its sector in the calendar year.

Another stock in the Consumer Discretionary sector, Netflix (NFLX), has outperformed the sector so far this year. The stock's year-to-date return is 3.2%.

The consensus estimate for Netflix's current year EPS has increased 4.1% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy).

Looking more specifically, Dolby Laboratories belongs to the Audio Video Production industry, a group that includes 8 individual stocks and currently sits at #12 in the Zacks Industry Rank. On average, this group has lost an average of 2.7% so far this year, meaning that DLB is performing better in terms of year-to-date returns.

In contrast, Netflix falls under the Broadcast Radio and Television industry. Currently, this industry has 19 stocks and is ranked #30. Since the beginning of the year, the industry has moved +3.2%.

Investors interested in the Consumer Discretionary sector may want to keep a close eye on Dolby Laboratories and Netflix 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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