Investors interested in Transportation stocks should always be looking to find the best-performing companies in the group. United Airlines (UAL) 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? Let's take a closer look at the stock's year-to-date performance to find out.

United Airlines is one of 131 companies in the Transportation group. The Transportation group currently sits at #16 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 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. United Airlines is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #1 (Strong Buy).

Over the past 90 days, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for UAL's full-year earnings has moved 12.1% higher. This means that analyst sentiment is stronger and the stock's earnings outlook is improving.

According to our latest data, UAL has moved about 7.3% on a year-to-date basis. Meanwhile, the Transportation sector has returned an average of 6.5% on a year-to-date basis. This means that United Airlines is performing better than its sector in terms of year-to-date returns.

Another stock in the Transportation sector, Viking Holdings (VIK), has outperformed the sector so far this year. The stock's year-to-date return is 17.1%.

The consensus estimate for Viking Holdings' current year EPS has increased 7.8% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).

Looking more specifically, United Airlines belongs to the Transportation - Airline industry, a group that includes 28 individual stocks and currently sits at #53 in the Zacks Industry Rank. This group has gained an average of 17.3% so far this year, so UAL is slightly underperforming its industry in this area.

In contrast, Viking Holdings falls under the Transportation - Truck industry. Currently, this industry has 13 stocks and is ranked #203. Since the beginning of the year, the industry has moved +8%.

United Airlines and Viking Holdings could continue their solid performance, so investors interested in Transportation stocks should continue to pay close attention to these stocks.

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