For those looking to find strong Basic Materials stocks, it is prudent to search for companies in the group that are outperforming their peers. Has First Majestic Silver (AG) 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.
First Majestic Silver is a member of our Basic Materials group, which includes 241 different companies and currently sits at #12 in the Zacks Sector Rank. 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 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. First Majestic Silver is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).
Over the past three months, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for AG's full-year earnings has moved 88.7% higher. This signals that analyst sentiment is improving and the stock's earnings outlook is more positive.
Based on the most recent data, AG has returned 194.2% so far this year. At the same time, Basic Materials stocks have gained an average of 28.6%. As we can see, First Majestic Silver is performing better than its sector in the calendar year.
Another Basic Materials stock, which has outperformed the sector so far this year, is American Resources Corporation (AREC). The stock has returned 113.9% year-to-date.
In American Resources Corporation's case, the consensus EPS estimate for the current year increased 15% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).
Looking more specifically, First Majestic Silver belongs to the Mining - Silver industry, a group that includes 9 individual stocks and currently sits at #17 in the Zacks Industry Rank. On average, stocks in this group have gained 175.4% this year, meaning that AG is performing better in terms of year-to-date returns.
American Resources Corporation, however, belongs to the Mining - Miscellaneous industry. Currently, this 69-stock industry is ranked #102. The industry has moved +33.1% so far this year.
Going forward, investors interested in Basic Materials stocks should continue to pay close attention to First Majestic Silver and American Resources Corporation as they could maintain their solid performance.
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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).
The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.
