The Industrial Products group has plenty of great stocks, but investors should always be looking for companies that are outperforming their peers. Is Packaging Corp. (PKG) one of those stocks right now? Let's take a closer look at the stock's year-to-date performance to find out.

Packaging Corp. is one of 213 companies in the Industrial Products group. The Industrial Products group currently sits at #11 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 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. Packaging Corp. is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #1 (Strong Buy).

Over the past 90 days, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for PKG's full-year earnings has moved 4.1% higher. This means that analyst sentiment is stronger and the stock's earnings outlook is improving.

Our latest available data shows that PKG has returned about 39.6% since the start of the calendar year. Meanwhile, stocks in the Industrial Products group have gained about 9% on average. This shows that Packaging Corp. is outperforming its peers so far this year.

Another stock in the Industrial Products sector, Quad/Graphics (QUAD), has outperformed the sector so far this year. The stock's year-to-date return is 41.7%.

For Quad/Graphics, the consensus EPS estimate for the current year has increased 10.5% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).

Looking more specifically, Packaging Corp. belongs to the Containers - Paper and Packaging industry, a group that includes 11 individual stocks and currently sits at #197 in the Zacks Industry Rank. This group has gained an average of 11.9% so far this year, so PKG is performing better in this area.

In contrast, Quad/Graphics falls under the Commercial Printing industry. Currently, this industry has 4 stocks and is ranked #3. Since the beginning of the year, the industry has moved +37.8%.

Going forward, investors interested in Industrial Products stocks should continue to pay close attention to Packaging Corp. and Quad/Graphics as they could maintain their solid performance.

Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report

Packaging Corporation of America (PKG) : Free Stock Analysis Report

Quad Graphics, Inc (QUAD) : Free Stock Analysis Report

To read this article on Zacks.com click here.

Zacks Investment Research