For those looking to find strong Oils-Energy stocks, it is prudent to search for companies in the group that are outperforming their peers. Gevo, Inc. (GEVO) 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? A quick glance at the company's year-to-date performance in comparison to the rest of the Oils-Energy sector should help us answer this question.

Gevo, Inc. is a member of our Oils-Energy group, which includes 239 different companies and currently sits at #11 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 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. Gevo, Inc. is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for GEVO's full-year earnings has moved 5.6% higher within the past quarter. This signals that analyst sentiment is improving and the stock's earnings outlook is more positive.

According to our latest data, GEVO has moved about 25.9% on a year-to-date basis. At the same time, Oils-Energy stocks have lost an average of 1.2%. As we can see, Gevo, Inc. is performing better than its sector in the calendar year.

Another stock in the Oils-Energy sector, SunCoke Energy (SXC), has outperformed the sector so far this year. The stock's year-to-date return is 2.3%.

Over the past three months, SunCoke Energy's consensus EPS estimate for the current year has increased 21.3%. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).

Looking more specifically, Gevo, Inc. belongs to the Alternative Energy - Other industry, a group that includes 43 individual stocks and currently sits at #123 in the Zacks Industry Rank. This group has gained an average of 53% so far this year, so GEVO is slightly underperforming its industry in this area.

On the other hand, SunCoke Energy belongs to the Coal industry. This 9-stock industry is currently ranked #82. The industry has moved -3.6% year to date.

Gevo, Inc. and SunCoke Energy could continue their solid performance, so investors interested in Oils-Energy stocks should continue to pay close attention to these stocks.

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