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

Bae Systems PLC is one of 46 individual stocks in the Aerospace sector. Collectively, these companies sit at #9 in the Zacks Sector Rank. The Zacks Sector Rank considers 16 different groups, measuring the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks within the sector to gauge the strength of each group.

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. Bae Systems PLC is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for BAESY's full-year earnings has moved 0.1% higher within the past quarter. This signals that analyst sentiment is improving and the stock's earnings outlook is more positive.

Our latest available data shows that BAESY has returned about 24.5% since the start of the calendar year. In comparison, Aerospace companies have returned an average of 7.5%. This shows that Bae Systems PLC is outperforming its peers so far this year.

One other Aerospace stock that has outperformed the sector so far this year is Curtiss-Wright (CW). The stock is up 74.8% year-to-date.

In Curtiss-Wright's case, the consensus EPS estimate for the current year increased 1.2% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).

Looking more specifically, Bae Systems PLC belongs to the Aerospace - Defense Equipment industry, a group that includes 23 individual stocks and currently sits at #166 in the Zacks Industry Rank. This group has gained an average of 35.1% so far this year, so BAESY is slightly underperforming its industry in this area. Curtiss-Wright is also part of the same industry.

Investors interested in the Aerospace sector may want to keep a close eye on Bae Systems PLC and Curtiss-Wright as they attempt to continue their solid performance.

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