Is Marathon Oil (MRO) Stock Outpacing Its Oils-Energy Peers This Year?

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Investors interested in Oils-Energy stocks should always be looking to find the best-performing companies in the group. Is Marathon Oil (MRO) one of those stocks right now? 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.

Marathon Oil is a member of the Oils-Energy sector. This group includes 246 individual stocks and currently holds a Zacks Sector Rank of #1. 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. Marathon Oil is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #1 (Strong Buy).

Over the past 90 days, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for MRO's full-year earnings has moved 17.8% higher. This is a sign of improving analyst sentiment and a positive earnings outlook trend.

According to our latest data, MRO has moved about 7.8% on a year-to-date basis. In comparison, Oils-Energy companies have returned an average of 7.3%. This means that Marathon Oil is outperforming the sector as a whole this year.

PBF Energy (PBF) is another Oils-Energy stock that has outperformed the sector so far this year. Since the beginning of the year, the stock has returned 21%.

The consensus estimate for PBF Energy's current year EPS has increased 29.7% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy).

Breaking things down more, Marathon Oil is a member of the Oil and Gas - Integrated - United States industry, which includes 12 individual companies and currently sits at #35 in the Zacks Industry Rank. Stocks in this group have gained about 10.2% so far this year, so MRO is slightly underperforming its industry this group in terms of year-to-date returns.

In contrast, PBF Energy falls under the Oil and Gas - Refining and Marketing industry. Currently, this industry has 15 stocks and is ranked #22. Since the beginning of the year, the industry has moved +10%.

Investors interested in the Oils-Energy sector may want to keep a close eye on Marathon Oil and PBF Energy as they attempt to continue their solid performance.

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