The Retail-Wholesale group has plenty of great stocks, but investors should always be looking for companies that are outperforming their peers. Chipotle Mexican Grill (CMG) 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 Retail-Wholesale sector should help us answer this question.

Chipotle Mexican Grill is a member of the Retail-Wholesale sector. This group includes 212 individual stocks and currently holds a Zacks Sector Rank of #6. 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. Chipotle Mexican Grill is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for CMG's full-year earnings has moved 2.3% higher within the past quarter. This signals that analyst sentiment is improving and the stock's earnings outlook is more positive.

Based on the latest available data, CMG has gained about 31.4% so far this year. Meanwhile, stocks in the Retail-Wholesale group have gained about 28.5% on average. This shows that Chipotle Mexican Grill is outperforming its peers so far this year.

Cheesecake Factory (CAKE) is another Retail-Wholesale stock that has outperformed the sector so far this year. Since the beginning of the year, the stock has returned 35.3%.

The consensus estimate for Cheesecake Factory's current year EPS has increased 3% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).

Breaking things down more, Chipotle Mexican Grill is a member of the Retail - Restaurants industry, which includes 42 individual companies and currently sits at #137 in the Zacks Industry Rank. Stocks in this group have gained about 4.2% so far this year, so CMG is performing better this group in terms of year-to-date returns. Cheesecake Factory is also part of the same industry.

Investors interested in the Retail-Wholesale sector may want to keep a close eye on Chipotle Mexican Grill and Cheesecake Factory as they attempt to continue their solid performance.

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Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc. (CMG) : Free Stock Analysis Report

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