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Has Eli Lilly and (LLY) Outpaced Other Medical Stocks This Year?

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The Medical group has plenty of great stocks, but investors should always be looking for companies that are outperforming their peers. Eli Lilly and (LLY - Free Report) 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? One simple way to answer this question is to take a look at the year-to-date performance of LLY and the rest of the Medical group's stocks.

Eli Lilly and is one of 763 individual stocks in the Medical sector. Collectively, these companies sit at #12 in 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 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. LLY is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for LLY's full-year earnings has moved 5.63% higher within the past quarter. This shows that analyst sentiment has improved and the company's earnings outlook is stronger.

According to our latest data, LLY has moved about 1.95% on a year-to-date basis. In comparison, Medical companies have returned an average of 1.61%. As we can see, Eli Lilly and is performing better than its sector in the calendar year.

Looking more specifically, LLY belongs to the Large Cap Pharmaceuticals industry, a group that includes 14 individual stocks and currently sits at #205 in the Zacks Industry Rank. On average, stocks in this group have lost 2.80% this year, meaning that LLY is performing better in terms of year-to-date returns.

Investors in the Medical sector will want to keep a close eye on LLY as it attempts to continue its solid performance.


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