Are Basic Materials Stocks Lagging Albemarle (ALB) This Year?

Investors interested in Basic Materials stocks should always be looking to find the best-performing companies in the group. Albemarle (ALB) 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.Albemarle is one of 248 companies in the Basic Materials group. The Basic Materials group currently sits at #10 within 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 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. Albemarle is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #1 (Strong Buy).Within the past quarter, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for ALB's full-year earnings has moved 99.8% higher. This means that analyst sentiment is stronger and the stock's earnings outlook is improving.According to our latest data, ALB has moved about 48.5% on a year-to-date basis. Meanwhile, stocks in the Basic Materials group have gained about 20.8% on average. This means that Albemarle is performing better than its sector in terms of year-to-date returns.Another stock in the Basic Materials sector, Almonty Industries Inc. (ALM), has outperformed the sector so far this year. The stock's year-to-date return is 137.5%.For Almonty Industries Inc., the consensus EPS estimate for the current year has increased 117.7% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).Breaking things down more, Albemarle is a member of the Chemical - Diversified industry, which includes 29 individual companies and currently sits at #91 in the Zacks Industry Rank. On average, stocks in this group have gained 37.7% this year, meaning that ALB is performing better in terms of year-to-date returns. In contrast, Almonty Industries Inc. falls under the Mining - Miscellaneous industry. Currently, this industry has 72 stocks and is ranked #166. Since the beginning of the year, the industry has moved +32.2%.Investors with an interest in Basic Materials stocks should continue to track Albemarle and Almonty Industries Inc.. These stocks will be looking to continue their solid performance.Radical New Technology Could Hand Investors Huge GainsQuantum Computing is the next technological revolution, and it could be even more advanced than AI.While some believed the technology was years away, it is already present and moving fast. Large hyperscalers, such as Microsoft, Google, Amazon, Oracle, and even Meta and Tesla, are scrambling to integrate quantum computing into their infrastructure.Senior Stock Strategist Kevin Cook reveals 7 carefully selected stocks poised to dominate the quantum computing landscape in his report, Beyond AI: The Quantum Leap in Computing Power.Kevin was among the early experts who recognized NVIDIA's enormous potential back in 2016. Now, he has keyed in on what could be "the next big thing" in quantum computing supremacy. Today, you have a rare chance to position your portfolio at the forefront of this opportunity.See Top Quantum Stocks 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