Investors focused on the Computer and Technology space have likely heard of Applied Materials (AMAT), but is the stock performing well in comparison to the rest of its sector peers? One simple way to answer this question is to take a look at the year-to-date performance of AMAT and the rest of the Computer and Technology group's stocks.Applied Materials is one of 627 individual stocks in the Computer and Technology sector. Collectively, these companies sit at #7 in 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 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. AMAT is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).Over the past three months, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for AMAT's full-year earnings has moved 20.61% higher. This shows that analyst sentiment has improved and the company's earnings outlook is stronger.Our latest available data shows that AMAT has returned about 31.46% since the start of the calendar year. Meanwhile, the Computer and Technology sector has returned an average of 2.58% on a year-to-date basis. This means that Applied Materials is performing better than its sector in terms of year-to-date returns.Breaking things down more, AMAT is a member of the Semiconductor Equipment - Wafer Fabrication industry, which includes 4 individual companies and currently sits at #40 in the Zacks Industry Rank. Stocks in this group have gained about 14.81% so far this year, so AMAT is performing better this group in terms of year-to-date returns.AMAT will likely be looking to continue its solid performance, so investors interested in Computer and Technology stocks should continue to pay close attention to the company.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 Applied Materials, Inc. (AMAT): Free Stock Analysis Report To read this article on Zacks.com click here. Zacks Investment Research