For those looking to find strong Basic Materials stocks, it is prudent to search for companies in the group that are outperforming their peers. BHP Group Limited Sponsored (BHP) 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? A quick glance at the company's year-to-date performance in comparison to the rest of the Basic Materials sector should help us answer this question.

BHP Group Limited Sponsored is one of 251 companies in the Basic Materials group. The Basic Materials group currently sits at #6 within the Zacks Sector Rank. The Zacks Sector Rank gauges the strength of our 16 individual sector groups by measuring the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks within the groups.

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. BHP is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).

Over the past 90 days, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for BHP's full-year earnings has moved 44.44% higher. This is a sign of improving analyst sentiment and a positive earnings outlook trend.

Based on the latest available data, BHP has gained about 20.95% so far this year. At the same time, Basic Materials stocks have gained an average of 19.15%. This shows that BHP Group Limited Sponsored is outperforming its peers so far this year.

Looking more specifically, BHP belongs to the Mining – Miscellaneous industry, a group that includes 47 individual stocks and currently sits at #189 in the Zacks Industry Rank. This group has gained an average of 34.92% so far this year, so BHP is slightly underperforming its industry in this area.

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

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