The Medical group has plenty of great stocks, but investors should always be looking for companies that are outperforming their peers. Atea Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (AVIR) 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? A quick glance at the company's year-to-date performance in comparison to the rest of the Medical sector should help us answer this question.

Atea Pharmaceuticals, Inc. is one of 1025 companies in the Medical group. The Medical group currently sits at #2 within 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 successful stock-picking model that emphasizes earnings estimates and estimate revisions. The system highlights a number of different stocks that could be poised to outperform the broader market over the next one to three months. Atea Pharmaceuticals, Inc. is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #1 (Strong Buy).

Over the past 90 days, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for AVIR's full-year earnings has moved 20.5% higher. This means that analyst sentiment is stronger and the stock's earnings outlook is improving.

According to our latest data, AVIR has moved about 16.4% on a year-to-date basis. In comparison, Medical companies have returned an average of 7.5%. This means that Atea Pharmaceuticals, Inc. is performing better than its sector in terms of year-to-date returns.

Another stock in the Medical sector, Doximity (DOCS), has outperformed the sector so far this year. The stock's year-to-date return is 56.4%.

Over the past three months, Doximity's consensus EPS estimate for the current year has increased 7.1%. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).

Breaking things down more, Atea Pharmaceuticals, Inc. is a member of the Medical - Biomedical and Genetics industry, which includes 504 individual companies and currently sits at #91 in the Zacks Industry Rank. On average, this group has lost an average of 0.1% so far this year, meaning that AVIR is performing better in terms of year-to-date returns.

On the other hand, Doximity belongs to the Medical Services industry. This 60-stock industry is currently ranked #175. The industry has moved +1.9% year to date.

Atea Pharmaceuticals, Inc. and Doximity could continue their solid performance, so investors interested in Medical stocks should continue to pay close attention to these stocks.

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