Has POSCO (PKX) Outpaced Other Basic Materials Stocks This Year?

The Basic Materials group has plenty of great stocks, but investors should always be looking for companies that are outperforming their peers. Posco (PKX) 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? 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.Posco is a member of the Basic Materials sector. This group includes 232 individual stocks and currently holds a Zacks Sector Rank of #5. The Zacks Sector Rank includes 16 different groups and is listed in order from best to worst in terms of the average Zacks Rank of the individual companies within each of these sectors.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. Posco is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).Over the past 90 days, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for PKX's full-year earnings has moved 2.9% higher. This signals that analyst sentiment is improving and the stock's earnings outlook is more positive.Based on the latest available data, PKX has gained about 7.2% so far this year. At the same time, Basic Materials stocks have gained an average of 4.3%. As we can see, Posco is performing better than its sector in the calendar year.Salzgitter AG (SZGPY) is another Basic Materials stock that has outperformed the sector so far this year. Since the beginning of the year, the stock has returned 58.7%.Over the past three months, Salzgitter AG's consensus EPS estimate for the current year has increased 325%. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).Looking more specifically, Posco belongs to the Steel - Producers industry, which includes 18 individual stocks and currently sits at #29 in the Zacks Industry Rank. On average, stocks in this group have gained 9.4% this year, meaning that PKX is slightly underperforming its industry in terms of year-to-date returns. Salzgitter AG is also part of the same industry.Posco and Salzgitter AG could continue their solid performance, so investors interested in Basic Materials stocks should continue to pay close attention to these stocks.Zacks' Research Chief Names "Stock Most Likely to Double"Our team of experts has just released the 5 stocks with the greatest probability of gaining +100% or more in the coming months. Of those 5, Director of Research Sheraz Mian highlights the one stock set to climb highest.This top pick is among the most innovative financial firms. With a fast-growing customer base (already 50+ million) and a diverse set of cutting edge solutions, this stock is poised for big gains. Of course, all our elite picks aren’t winners but this one could far surpass earlier Zacks’ Stocks Set to Double like Nano-X Imaging which shot up +129.6% in little more than 9 months.Free: See Our Top Stock And 4 Runners UpWant 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 POSCO (PKX): Free Stock Analysis Report Salzgitter AG (SZGPY): Free Stock Analysis ReportThis article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).Zacks Investment ResearchWeiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Zacks Weiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Zacks