Investors focused on the Oils-Energy space have likely heard of Marathon Oil (MRO Quick QuoteMRO - Free Report) , but is the stock performing well in comparison to the rest of its sector peers? A quick glance at the company's year-to-date performance in comparison to the rest of the Oils-Energy sector should help us answer this question.

Marathon Oil is one of 258 individual stocks in the Oils-Energy sector. Collectively, these companies sit at #1 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 is a proven system that emphasizes earnings estimates and estimate revisions, highlighting a variety of stocks that are displaying the right characteristics to beat the market over the next one to three months. MRO is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #1 (Strong Buy).

Within the past quarter, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for MRO's full-year earnings has moved 19.04% higher. This shows that analyst sentiment has improved and the company's earnings outlook is stronger.

According to our latest data, MRO has moved about 144.68% on a year-to-date basis. At the same time, Oils-Energy stocks have gained an average of 37.19%. This shows that Marathon Oil is outperforming its peers so far this year.

Looking more specifically, MRO belongs to the Oil and Gas - Integrated - United States industry, which includes 12 individual stocks and currently sits at #46 in the Zacks Industry Rank. On average, this group has gained an average of 94.96% so far this year, meaning that MRO is performing better in terms of year-to-date returns.

Investors in the Oils-Energy sector will want to keep a close eye on MRO as it attempts to continue its solid performance.