Is Kratos Defense & Security Solutions (KTOS) Stock Outpacing Its Aerospace Peers This Year?

For those looking to find strong Aerospace stocks, it is prudent to search for companies in the group that are outperforming their peers. Is Kratos (KTOS) 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.Kratos is one of 51 companies in the Aerospace group. The Aerospace group currently sits at #9 within 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. Kratos is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #1 (Strong Buy).The Zacks Consensus Estimate for KTOS' full-year earnings has moved 4.4% 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 KTOS has returned about 32.5% since the start of the calendar year. Meanwhile, the Aerospace sector has returned an average of 6.5% on a year-to-date basis. This means that Kratos is outperforming the sector as a whole this year.Another stock in the Aerospace sector, Leidos (LDOS), has outperformed the sector so far this year. The stock's year-to-date return is 11.8%.For Leidos, the consensus EPS estimate for the current year has increased 9.2% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).Looking more specifically, Kratos belongs to the Aerospace - Defense Equipment industry, which includes 26 individual stocks and currently sits at #55 in the Zacks Industry Rank. On average, stocks in this group have gained 40.2% this year, meaning that KTOS is slightly underperforming its industry in terms of year-to-date returns.Leidos, however, belongs to the Aerospace - Defense industry. Currently, this 24-stock industry is ranked #180. The industry has moved -4.2% so far this year.Investors interested in the Aerospace sector may want to keep a close eye on Kratos and Leidos as they attempt to continue their solid performance.7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 DaysJust released: Experts distill 7 elite stocks from the current list of 220 Zacks Rank #1 Strong Buys. They deem these tickers "Most Likely for Early Price Pops."Since 1988, the full list has beaten the market more than 2X over with an average gain of +24.1% per year. So be sure to give these hand picked 7 your immediate attention. See them now >>Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc. (KTOS): Free Stock Analysis Report Leidos Holdings, Inc. (LDOS): Free Stock Analysis ReportTo read this article on Zacks.com click here.Zacks Investment ResearchWeiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Zacks Weiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Zacks