Is Rio Tinto (RIO) Stock Outpacing Its Basic Materials Peers This Year?

Investors interested in Basic Materials stocks should always be looking to find the best-performing companies in the group. Has Rio Tinto (RIO) been one of those stocks this year? By taking a look at the stock's year-to-date performance in comparison to its Basic Materials peers, we might be able to answer that question.Rio Tinto is one of 248 companies in the Basic Materials group. The Basic Materials group currently sits at #3 within 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 proven model that highlights a variety of stocks with the right characteristics to outperform the market over the next one to three months. The system emphasizes earnings estimate revisions and favors companies with improving earnings outlooks. Rio Tinto is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).The Zacks Consensus Estimate for RIO's full-year earnings has moved 3.1% higher within the past quarter. This shows that analyst sentiment has improved and the company's earnings outlook is stronger.Based on the most recent data, RIO has returned 19.4% so far this year. Meanwhile, stocks in the Basic Materials group have gained about 9.3% on average. This means that Rio Tinto is outperforming the sector as a whole this year.Another Basic Materials stock, which has outperformed the sector so far this year, is Steel Dynamics (STLD). The stock has returned 43.8% year-to-date.In Steel Dynamics' case, the consensus EPS estimate for the current year increased 19.1% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).To break things down more, Rio Tinto belongs to the Mining - Miscellaneous industry, a group that includes 72 individual companies and currently sits at #154 in the Zacks Industry Rank. On average, stocks in this group have gained 17.2% this year, meaning that RIO is performing better in terms of year-to-date returns. In contrast, Steel Dynamics falls under the Steel - Producers industry. Currently, this industry has 17 stocks and is ranked #31. Since the beginning of the year, the industry has moved +31.6%.Investors interested in the Basic Materials sector may want to keep a close eye on Rio Tinto and Steel Dynamics as they attempt to continue their solid performance.7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 DaysJust released: Experts distill 7 elite stocks from the current list of 220 Zacks Rank #1 Strong Buys. They deem these tickers "Most Likely for Early Price Pops."Since 1988, the full list has beaten the market more than 2X over with an average gain of +23.7% per year. So be sure to give these hand picked 7 your immediate attention. See them now >>This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).Zacks Investment ResearchWeiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Zacks Weiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Zacks