Has Netflix (NFLX) Outpaced Other Consumer Discretionary Stocks This Year?

The Consumer Discretionary group has plenty of great stocks, but investors should always be looking for companies that are outperforming their peers. Netflix (NASDAQ:NFLX) 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 NFLX and the rest of the Consumer Discretionary group's stocks.

Netflix is one of 240 companies in the Consumer Discretionary group. The Consumer Discretionary group currently sits at #11 within 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 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. NFLX is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).

Over the past three months, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for NFLX's full-year earnings has moved 10.60% higher. This shows that analyst sentiment has improved and the company's earnings outlook is stronger.

Based on the latest available data, NFLX has gained about 11.29% so far this year. Meanwhile, stocks in the Consumer Discretionary group have lost about 7.27% on average. As we can see, Netflix is performing better than its sector in the calendar year.

To break things down more, NFLX belongs to the Broadcast Radio and Television industry, a group that includes 24 individual companies and currently sits at #97 in the Zacks Industry Rank. Stocks in this group have lost about 0.29% so far this year, so NFLX is performing better this group in terms of year-to-date returns.

NFLX will likely be looking to continue its solid performance, so investors interested in Consumer Discretionary stocks should continue to pay close attention to the company.