For those looking to find strong Industrial Products stocks, it is prudent to search for companies in the group that are outperforming their peers. Has Applied Industrial Technologies (AIT) been one of those stocks this year? Let's take a closer look at the stock's year-to-date performance to find out.

Applied Industrial Technologies is one of 213 individual stocks in the Industrial Products sector. Collectively, these companies sit at #13 in the Zacks Sector Rank. The Zacks Sector Rank considers 16 different groups, measuring the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks within the sector to gauge the strength of each group.

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. Applied Industrial Technologies is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).

Within the past quarter, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for AIT's full-year earnings has moved 0.5% higher. This shows that analyst sentiment has improved and the company's earnings outlook is stronger.

According to our latest data, AIT has moved about 41.6% on a year-to-date basis. Meanwhile, stocks in the Industrial Products group have gained about 9.5% on average. This means that Applied Industrial Technologies is performing better than its sector in terms of year-to-date returns.

Mueller Water Products (MWA) is another Industrial Products stock that has outperformed the sector so far this year. Since the beginning of the year, the stock has returned 59.5%.

The consensus estimate for Mueller Water Products' current year EPS has increased 2.9% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).

To break things down more, Applied Industrial Technologies belongs to the Manufacturing - General Industrial industry, a group that includes 42 individual companies and currently sits at #151 in the Zacks Industry Rank. On average, stocks in this group have gained 9.7% this year, meaning that AIT is performing better in terms of year-to-date returns.

In contrast, Mueller Water Products falls under the Steel - Pipe and Tube industry. Currently, this industry has 4 stocks and is ranked #44. Since the beginning of the year, the industry has moved +13.5%.

Investors with an interest in Industrial Products stocks should continue to track Applied Industrial Technologies and Mueller Water Products. These stocks will be looking to continue their solid performance.

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