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 Nucor (NUE Quick QuoteNUE - Free Report) been one of those stocks this year? Let's take a closer look at the stock's year-to-date performance to find out.

Nucor is one of 245 companies in the Basic Materials group. The Basic Materials group currently sits at #5 within 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 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).

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for NUE's full-year earnings has moved 89.12% higher within the past quarter. This shows that analyst sentiment has improved and the company's earnings outlook is stronger.

According to our latest data, NUE has moved about 81.78% on a year-to-date basis. At the same time, Basic Materials stocks have gained an average of 19.64%. This shows that Nucor is outperforming its peers so far this year.

Looking more specifically, NUE belongs to the Steel - Producers industry, which includes 24 individual stocks and currently sits at #10 in the Zacks Industry Rank. This group has gained an average of 44.79% so far this year, so NUE is performing better in this area.

Investors in the Basic Materials sector will want to keep a close eye on NUE as it attempts to continue its solid performance.