The Basic Materials group has plenty of great stocks, but investors should always be looking for companies that are outperforming their peers. Braskem (BAK) 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.
Braskem is one of 248 individual stocks in the Basic Materials sector. Collectively, these companies sit at #13 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. Braskem is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #1 (Strong Buy).
Over the past 90 days, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for BAK's full-year earnings has moved 13.9% higher. This shows that analyst sentiment has improved and the company's earnings outlook is stronger.
Based on the most recent data, BAK has returned 20% so far this year. Meanwhile, stocks in the Basic Materials group have gained about 13.8% on average. As we can see, Braskem is performing better than its sector in the calendar year.
Another stock in the Basic Materials sector, Denison Mine (DNN), has outperformed the sector so far this year. The stock's year-to-date return is 31.2%.
For Denison Mine, the consensus EPS estimate for the current year has increased 20% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy).
Looking more specifically, Braskem belongs to the Chemical - Specialty industry, which includes 44 individual stocks and currently sits at #183 in the Zacks Industry Rank. Stocks in this group have gained about 7.7% so far this year, so BAK is performing better this group in terms of year-to-date returns.
On the other hand, Denison Mine belongs to the Mining - Miscellaneous industry. This 72-stock industry is currently ranked #150. The industry has moved +14.9% year to date.
Going forward, investors interested in Basic Materials stocks should continue to pay close attention to Braskem and Denison Mine as they could maintain their solid performance.
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Braskem S.A. (BAK): Free Stock Analysis Report
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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).