The Basic Materials group has plenty of great stocks, but investors should always be looking for companies that are outperforming their peers. Has AngloGold Ashanti (AU) been one of those stocks this year? A quick glance at the company's year-to-date performance in comparison to the rest of the Basic Materials sector should help us answer this question.

AngloGold Ashanti is a member of the Basic Materials sector. This group includes 235 individual stocks and currently holds a Zacks Sector Rank of #9. 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 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. AngloGold Ashanti is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #1 (Strong Buy).

Over the past 90 days, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for AU's full-year earnings has moved 11.7% higher. This signals that analyst sentiment is improving and the stock's earnings outlook is more positive.

Based on the most recent data, AU has returned 9.1% so far this year. At the same time, Basic Materials stocks have lost an average of 11.5%. This means that AngloGold Ashanti is performing better than its sector in terms of year-to-date returns.

Nouveau Monde Graphite Inc. (NMG) is another Basic Materials stock that has outperformed the sector so far this year. Since the beginning of the year, the stock has returned 37.1%.

In Nouveau Monde Graphite Inc.'s case, the consensus EPS estimate for the current year increased 9.8% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).

Looking more specifically, AngloGold Ashanti belongs to the Mining - Gold industry, which includes 40 individual stocks and currently sits at #136 in the Zacks Industry Rank. On average, stocks in this group have gained 12.9% this year, meaning that AU is slightly underperforming its industry in terms of year-to-date returns.

In contrast, Nouveau Monde Graphite Inc. falls under the Mining - Miscellaneous industry. Currently, this industry has 60 stocks and is ranked #142. Since the beginning of the year, the industry has moved -21.8%.

Investors with an interest in Basic Materials stocks should continue to track AngloGold Ashanti and Nouveau Monde Graphite Inc. These stocks will be looking to continue their solid performance.

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