The Medical group has plenty of great stocks, but investors should always be looking for companies that are outperforming their peers. Alimera Sciences (ALIM) 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? Let's take a closer look at the stock's year-to-date performance to find out.Alimera Sciences is a member of the Medical sector. This group includes 1186 individual stocks and currently holds a Zacks Sector Rank of #5. 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 proven system that emphasizes earnings estimates and estimate revisions, highlighting a variety of stocks that are displaying the right characteristics to beat the market over the next one to three months. Alimera Sciences is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).Within the past quarter, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for ALIM's full-year earnings has moved 11.1% higher. This is a sign of improving analyst sentiment and a positive earnings outlook trend.According to our latest data, ALIM has moved about 30.6% on a year-to-date basis. Meanwhile, the Medical sector has returned an average of -14.4% on a year-to-date basis. As we can see, Alimera Sciences is performing better than its sector in the calendar year.Another stock in the Medical sector, Centene (CNC), has outperformed the sector so far this year. The stock's year-to-date return is 16.9%.For Centene, the consensus EPS estimate for the current year has increased 3.8% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).Looking more specifically, Alimera Sciences belongs to the Medical - Biomedical and Genetics industry, a group that includes 557 individual stocks and currently sits at #71 in the Zacks Industry Rank. This group has lost an average of 17% so far this year, so ALIM is performing better in this area.In contrast, Centene falls under the Medical - HMOs industry. Currently, this industry has 8 stocks and is ranked #65. Since the beginning of the year, the industry has moved +9.4%.Going forward, investors interested in Medical stocks should continue to pay close attention to Alimera Sciences and Centene as they could maintain their solid performance. Want to Know the #1 Semiconductor Stock for 2022? Few people know how promising the semiconductor market is. Over the last couple of years, disruptions to the supply chain have caused shortages in several industries. The absence of one single semiconductor can stop all operations in certain industries. This year, companies that create and produce this essential material will have incredible pricing power. For a limited time, Zacks is revealing the top semiconductor stock for 2022. You'll find it in our new Special Report, One Semiconductor Stock Stands to Gain the Most. Today, it's yours free with no obligation.>>Give me access to my free special report.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 Alimera Sciences, Inc. (ALIM): Free Stock Analysis Report Centene Corporation (CNC): Free Stock Analysis Report To read this article on Zacks.com click here.