Investors focused on the Basic Materials space have likely heard of Rio Tinto (RIO Quick QuoteRIO - 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.

Rio Tinto is one of 245 companies in the Basic Materials group. The Basic Materials group currently sits at #2 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. RIO is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #1 (Strong Buy).

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for RIO's full-year earnings has moved 44.68% higher within the past quarter. This is a sign of improving analyst sentiment and a positive earnings outlook trend.

According to our latest data, RIO has moved about 3.67% on a year-to-date basis. In comparison, Basic Materials companies have returned an average of 14.10%. This shows that Rio Tinto is outperforming its peers so far this year.

Looking more specifically, RIO belongs to the Mining - Miscellaneous industry, a group that includes 46 individual stocks and currently sits at #77 in the Zacks Industry Rank. This group has gained an average of 22.63% so far this year, so RIO is slightly underperforming its industry in this area.

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