Investors interested in Consumer Staples stocks should always be looking to find the best-performing companies in the group. Is Imperial Tobacco Group PLC (IMBBY) one of those stocks right now? A quick glance at the company's year-to-date performance in comparison to the rest of the Consumer Staples sector should help us answer this question.

Imperial Tobacco Group PLC is a member of the Consumer Staples sector. This group includes 178 individual stocks and currently holds a Zacks Sector Rank of #7. 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. Imperial Tobacco Group PLC is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).

Over the past three months, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for IMBBY's full-year earnings has moved 2.2% higher. This shows that analyst sentiment has improved and the company's earnings outlook is stronger.

Based on the most recent data, IMBBY has returned 27.8% so far this year. Meanwhile, the Consumer Staples sector has returned an average of 5.2% on a year-to-date basis. This means that Imperial Tobacco Group PLC is outperforming the sector as a whole this year.

Nestle SA (NSRGY) is another Consumer Staples stock that has outperformed the sector so far this year. Since the beginning of the year, the stock has returned 29.5%.

Over the past three months, Nestle SA's consensus EPS estimate for the current year has increased 3.9%. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).

Breaking things down more, Imperial Tobacco Group PLC is a member of the Tobacco industry, which includes 6 individual companies and currently sits at #12 in the Zacks Industry Rank. On average, this group has gained an average of 31.4% so far this year, meaning that IMBBY is slightly underperforming its industry in terms of year-to-date returns.

In contrast, Nestle SA falls under the Consumer Products - Staples industry. Currently, this industry has 38 stocks and is ranked #156. Since the beginning of the year, the industry has moved -0.8%.

Investors interested in the Consumer Staples sector may want to keep a close eye on Imperial Tobacco Group PLC and Nestle SA as they attempt to continue their solid performance.

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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).

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