Investors focused on the Basic Materials space have likely heard of Barrick Gold (GOLD Quick QuoteGOLD - Free Report) , but is the stock performing well in comparison to the rest of its sector peers? Let's take a closer look at the stock's year-to-date performance to find out.

Barrick Gold is one of 239 companies in the Basic Materials group. The Basic Materials group currently sits at #4 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 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. GOLD is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).

Over the past 90 days, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for GOLD's full-year earnings has moved 24.55% higher. This shows that analyst sentiment has improved and the company's earnings outlook is stronger.

Our latest available data shows that GOLD has returned about 42.82% since the start of the calendar year. In comparison, Basic Materials companies have returned an average of -15.33%. This means that Barrick Gold is outperforming the sector as a whole this year.

Looking more specifically, GOLD belongs to the Mining - Gold industry, which includes 30 individual stocks and currently sits at #7 in the Zacks Industry Rank. On average, this group has gained an average of 24.72% so far this year, meaning that GOLD is performing better in terms of year-to-date returns.

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