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Is Nutrien (NTR) Stock Outpacing Its Basic Materials Peers This Year?

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Investors interested in Basic Materials stocks should always be looking to find the best-performing companies in the group. Nutrien (NTR - 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? 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.

Nutrien is a member of the Basic Materials sector. This group includes 242 individual stocks and currently holds a Zacks Sector Rank of #12. 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 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. Nutrien is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).

Over the past 90 days, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for NTR's full-year earnings has moved 19.2% higher. This means that analyst sentiment is stronger and the stock's earnings outlook is improving.

Based on the latest available data, NTR has gained about 4.3% so far this year. At the same time, Basic Materials stocks have lost an average of 13.3%. This shows that Nutrien is outperforming its peers so far this year.

Another stock in the Basic Materials sector, SQM (SQM - Free Report) , has outperformed the sector so far this year. The stock's year-to-date return is 77%.

In SQM's case, the consensus EPS estimate for the current year increased 75.3% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy).

Looking more specifically, Nutrien belongs to the Fertilizers industry, which includes 7 individual stocks and currently sits at #55 in the Zacks Industry Rank. On average, this group has gained an average of 17% so far this year, meaning that NTR is slightly underperforming its industry in terms of year-to-date returns. SQM is also part of the same industry.

Nutrien and SQM could continue their solid performance, so investors interested in Basic Materials stocks should continue to pay close attention to these stocks.


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