Investors focused on the Basic Materials space have likely heard of Asanko Gold (GAU Quick QuoteGAU - 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 GAU and the rest of the Basic Materials group's stocks.

Asanko Gold is one of 236 companies in the Basic Materials group. The Basic Materials group currently sits at #3 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 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. GAU is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).

Over the past three months, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for GAU's full-year earnings has moved 81.58% higher. This is a sign of improving analyst sentiment and a positive earnings outlook trend.

According to our latest data, GAU has moved about 51.58% on a year-to-date basis. Meanwhile, stocks in the Basic Materials group have lost about 0.20% on average. This shows that Asanko Gold is outperforming its peers so far this year.

To break things down more, GAU belongs to the Mining - Gold industry, a group that includes 32 individual companies and currently sits at #54 in the Zacks Industry Rank. On average, stocks in this group have gained 40.34% this year, meaning that GAU is performing better in terms of year-to-date returns.

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