Investors interested in Medical stocks should always be looking to find the best-performing companies in the group. Alnylam Pharmaceuticals (ALNY) 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 Medical sector should help us answer this question.

Alnylam Pharmaceuticals is one of 1026 individual stocks in the Medical sector. Collectively, these companies sit at #4 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 is a successful stock-picking model that emphasizes earnings estimates and estimate revisions. The system highlights a number of different stocks that could be poised to outperform the broader market over the next one to three months. Alnylam Pharmaceuticals is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).

Within the past quarter, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for ALNY's full-year earnings has moved 30.3% higher. This is a sign of improving analyst sentiment and a positive earnings outlook trend.

Our latest available data shows that ALNY has returned about 43.7% since the start of the calendar year. At the same time, Medical stocks have gained an average of 9.1%. This shows that Alnylam Pharmaceuticals is outperforming its peers so far this year.

Another stock in the Medical sector, Corcept Therapeutics (CORT), has outperformed the sector so far this year. The stock's year-to-date return is 42.5%.

For Corcept Therapeutics, the consensus EPS estimate for the current year has increased 17.2% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy).

Looking more specifically, Alnylam Pharmaceuticals belongs to the Medical - Biomedical and Genetics industry, a group that includes 504 individual stocks and currently sits at #80 in the Zacks Industry Rank. This group has gained an average of 0.4% so far this year, so ALNY is performing better in this area.

In contrast, Corcept Therapeutics falls under the Medical - Drugs industry. Currently, this industry has 171 stocks and is ranked #88. Since the beginning of the year, the industry has moved -0.6%.

Going forward, investors interested in Medical stocks should continue to pay close attention to Alnylam Pharmaceuticals and Corcept Therapeutics as they could maintain their solid performance.

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

Alnylam Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (ALNY) : Free Stock Analysis Report

Corcept Therapeutics Incorporated (CORT) : Free Stock Analysis Report

To read this article on Zacks.com click here.

Zacks Investment Research