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Is Nucor (NUE) Stock Outpacing Its Basic Materials Peers This Year?

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Investors focused on the Basic Materials space have likely heard of Nucor (NUE - Free Report) , but is the stock performing well in comparison to the rest of its sector peers? One simple way to answer this question is to take a look at the year-to-date performance of NUE and the rest of the Basic Materials group's stocks.

Nucor is one of 245 companies in the Basic Materials group. The Basic Materials group currently sits at #2 within the Zacks Sector Rank. The Zacks Sector Rank considers 16 different groups, measuring the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks within the sector to gauge the strength of each group.

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. NUE is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #1 (Strong Buy).

Within the past quarter, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for NUE's full-year earnings has moved 177.46% higher. This is a sign of improving analyst sentiment and a positive earnings outlook trend.

Based on the most recent data, NUE has returned 47.56% so far this year. Meanwhile, the Basic Materials sector has returned an average of 18.02% on a year-to-date basis. This means that Nucor is outperforming the sector as a whole this year.

Looking more specifically, NUE belongs to the Steel - Producers industry, which includes 24 individual stocks and currently sits at #3 in the Zacks Industry Rank. Stocks in this group have gained about 34.60% so far this year, so NUE is performing better this group in terms of year-to-date returns.

Investors with an interest in Basic Materials stocks should continue to track NUE. The stock will be looking to continue its solid performance.


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