Investors interested in Basic Materials stocks should always be looking to find the best-performing companies in the group. Has ArcelorMittal (MT) 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.

ArcelorMittal is one of 232 individual stocks in the Basic Materials sector. Collectively, these companies sit at #15 in 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 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. ArcelorMittal is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).

Over the past three months, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for MT's full-year earnings has moved 3.3% higher. This signals that analyst sentiment is improving and the stock's earnings outlook is more positive.

Based on the latest available data, MT has gained about 24.7% so far this year. Meanwhile, the Basic Materials sector has returned an average of 6.1% on a year-to-date basis. As we can see, ArcelorMittal is performing better than its sector in the calendar year.

Another stock in the Basic Materials sector, Salzgitter AG (SZGPY), has outperformed the sector so far this year. The stock's year-to-date return is 58.1%.

For Salzgitter AG, the consensus EPS estimate for the current year has increased 425% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).

Looking more specifically, ArcelorMittal belongs to the Steel - Producers industry, a group that includes 18 individual stocks and currently sits at #80 in the Zacks Industry Rank. On average, stocks in this group have gained 9.5% this year, meaning that MT is performing better in terms of year-to-date returns. Salzgitter AG is also part of the same industry.

Investors with an interest in Basic Materials stocks should continue to track ArcelorMittal and Salzgitter AG. These stocks will be looking to continue their solid performance.

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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).

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