Investors interested in Consumer Staples stocks should always be looking to find the best-performing companies in the group. Has Ingredion (INGR) been one of those stocks this year? A quick glance at the company's year-to-date performance in comparison to the rest of the Consumer Staples sector should help us answer this question.

Ingredion is a member of the Consumer Staples sector. This group includes 184 individual stocks and currently holds a Zacks Sector Rank of #11. 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. Ingredion is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for INGR's full-year earnings has moved 2.6% higher within the past quarter. This shows that analyst sentiment has improved and the company's earnings outlook is stronger.

Based on the latest available data, INGR has gained about 23.9% so far this year. At the same time, Consumer Staples stocks have gained an average of 8.5%. As we can see, Ingredion is performing better than its sector in the calendar year.

Kerry Group PLC (KRYAY) is another Consumer Staples stock that has outperformed the sector so far this year. Since the beginning of the year, the stock has returned 16.4%.

In Kerry Group PLC's case, the consensus EPS estimate for the current year increased 2.8% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).

Looking more specifically, Ingredion belongs to the Food - Miscellaneous industry, which includes 45 individual stocks and currently sits at #91 in the Zacks Industry Rank. Stocks in this group have gained about 3% so far this year, so INGR is performing better this group in terms of year-to-date returns. Kerry Group PLC is also part of the same industry.

Investors interested in the Consumer Staples sector may want to keep a close eye on Ingredion and Kerry Group PLC as they attempt to continue their solid performance.

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