Are Computer and Technology Stocks Lagging Advanced Energy Industries (AEIS) This Year?

For those looking to find strong Computer and Technology stocks, it is prudent to search for companies in the group that are outperforming their peers. Is Advanced Energy Industries (AEIS) one of those stocks right now? Let's take a closer look at the stock's year-to-date performance to find out.Advanced Energy Industries is a member of the Computer and Technology sector. This group includes 592 individual stocks and currently holds a Zacks Sector Rank of #1. 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. Advanced Energy Industries is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).Over the past three months, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for AEIS' full-year earnings has moved 8.5% higher. This means that analyst sentiment is stronger and the stock's earnings outlook is improving.According to our latest data, AEIS has moved about 49.2% on a year-to-date basis. At the same time, Computer and Technology stocks have gained an average of 23.6%. This means that Advanced Energy Industries is performing better than its sector in terms of year-to-date returns.Another stock in the Computer and Technology sector, ASML (ASML), has outperformed the sector so far this year. The stock's year-to-date return is 59.4%.In ASML's case, the consensus EPS estimate for the current year increased 10.2% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).To break things down more, Advanced Energy Industries belongs to the Semiconductor Equipment - Wafer Fabrication industry, a group that includes 2 individual companies and currently sits at #7 in the Zacks Industry Rank. This group has gained an average of 59.1% so far this year, so AEIS is slightly underperforming its industry in this area. ASML is also part of the same industry.Investors interested in the Computer and Technology sector may want to keep a close eye on Advanced Energy Industries and ASML 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 +23.9% per year. So be sure to give these hand picked 7 your immediate attention. See them now >>This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).Zacks Investment ResearchWeiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Zacks Weiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Zacks