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Are Basic Materials Stocks Lagging Bunge Limited (BG) This Year?

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For those looking to find strong Basic Materials stocks, it is prudent to search for companies in the group that are outperforming their peers. Bunge (BG - Free Report) 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.

Bunge is a member of the Basic Materials sector. This group includes 243 individual stocks and currently holds a Zacks Sector Rank of #16. 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 system that emphasizes earnings estimates and estimate revisions, highlighting a variety of stocks that are displaying the right characteristics to beat the market over the next one to three months. Bunge is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).

Within the past quarter, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for BG's full-year earnings has moved 8.6% higher. This is a sign of improving analyst sentiment and a positive earnings outlook trend.

Based on the most recent data, BG has returned 4.8% so far this year. Meanwhile, stocks in the Basic Materials group have lost about 11.1% on average. This means that Bunge is performing better than its sector in terms of year-to-date returns.

Livent is another Basic Materials stock that has outperformed the sector so far this year. Since the beginning of the year, the stock has returned 27.1%.

For Livent, the consensus EPS estimate for the current year has increased 15.9% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).

To break things down more, Bunge belongs to the Agriculture - Products industry, a group that includes 7 individual companies and currently sits at #65 in the Zacks Industry Rank. This group has lost an average of 7.9% so far this year, so BG is performing better in this area.

In contrast, Livent falls under the Chemical - Specialty industry. Currently, this industry has 34 stocks and is ranked #200. Since the beginning of the year, the industry has moved -26.4%.

Going forward, investors interested in Basic Materials stocks should continue to pay close attention to Bunge and Livent as they could maintain their solid performance.


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