Investors focused on the Medical space have likely heard of Alexion Pharmaceuticals , but is the stock performing well in comparison to the rest of its sector peers? One simple way to answer this question is to take a look at the year-to-date performance of ALXN and the rest of the Medical group's stocks.

Alexion Pharmaceuticals is one of 883 individual stocks in the Medical sector. Collectively, these companies sit at #2 in the Zacks Sector Rank. The Zacks Sector Rank includes 16 different groups and is listed in order from best to worst in terms of the average Zacks Rank of the individual companies within each of these sectors.

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. ALXN is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).

Over the past 90 days, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for ALXN's full-year earnings has moved 4.55% higher. This signals that analyst sentiment is improving and the stock's earnings outlook is more positive.

According to our latest data, ALXN has moved about 12.73% on a year-to-date basis. In comparison, Medical companies have returned an average of 11.02%. This shows that Alexion Pharmaceuticals is outperforming its peers so far this year.

Looking more specifically, ALXN belongs to the Medical - Biomedical and Genetics industry, a group that includes 374 individual stocks and currently sits at #62 in the Zacks Industry Rank. This group has gained an average of 10.18% so far this year, so ALXN is performing better in this area.

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