Is Marathon Petroleum (MPC) Outperforming Other Oils-Energy Stocks This Year?

The Oils-Energy group has plenty of great stocks, but investors should always be looking for companies that are outperforming their peers. Has Marathon Petroleum (MPC) been one of those stocks this year? Let's take a closer look at the stock's year-to-date performance to find out.

Marathon Petroleum is one of 250 individual stocks in the Oils-Energy sector. Collectively, these companies sit at #5 in the Zacks Sector Rank. 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 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. Marathon Petroleum is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #1 (Strong Buy).

Over the past 90 days, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for MPC's full-year earnings has moved 50.6% higher. This signals that analyst sentiment is improving and the stock's earnings outlook is more positive.

According to our latest data, MPC has moved about 143.5% on a year-to-date basis. Meanwhile, the Oils-Energy sector has returned an average of 34.9% on a year-to-date basis. As we can see, Marathon Petroleum is performing better than its sector in the calendar year.

Another stock in the Oils-Energy sector, PBF Energy (PBF), has outperformed the sector so far this year. The stock's year-to-date return is 188.7%.

For PBF Energy, the consensus EPS estimate for the current year has increased 132.7% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy).

Breaking things down more, Marathon Petroleum is a member of the Oil and Gas - Refining and Marketing industry, which includes 16 individual companies and currently sits at #22 in the Zacks Industry Rank. On average, this group has gained an average of 129.5% so far this year, meaning that MPC is performing better in terms of year-to-date returns. PBF Energy is also part of the same industry.

Marathon Petroleum and PBF 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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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).

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