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Has Apple (AAPL) Outpaced Other Computer and Technology Stocks This Year?

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For those looking to find strong Computer and Technology stocks, it is prudent to search for companies in the group that are outperforming their peers. Has Apple (AAPL - Free Report) been one of those stocks this year? A quick glance at the company's year-to-date performance in comparison to the rest of the Computer and Technology sector should help us answer this question.

Apple is one of 623 individual stocks in the Computer and Technology sector. Collectively, these companies sit at #3 in the Zacks Sector Rank. The Zacks Sector Rank gauges the strength of our 16 individual sector groups by measuring the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks within the groups.

The Zacks Rank emphasizes earnings estimates and estimate revisions to find stocks with improving earnings outlooks. This system has a long record of success, and these stocks tend to be on track to beat the market over the next one to three months. AAPL is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #1 (Strong Buy).

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for AAPL's full-year earnings has moved 3.12% higher within the past quarter. This means that analyst sentiment is stronger and the stock's earnings outlook is improving.

Our latest available data shows that AAPL has returned about 31.30% since the start of the calendar year. Meanwhile, the Computer and Technology sector has returned an average of 12.44% on a year-to-date basis. This shows that Apple is outperforming its peers so far this year.

Looking more specifically, AAPL belongs to the Computer - Mini computers industry, which includes 4 individual stocks and currently sits at #3 in the Zacks Industry Rank. Stocks in this group have gained about 32.74% so far this year, so AAPL is slightly underperforming its industry this group in terms of year-to-date returns.

Investors in the Computer and Technology sector will want to keep a close eye on AAPL as it attempts to continue its solid performance.


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