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Has American Vanguard (AVD) Outpaced Other Basic Materials Stocks 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. American Vanguard (AVD - 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? By taking a look at the stock's year-to-date performance in comparison to its Basic Materials peers, we might be able to answer that question.

American Vanguard is a member of our Basic Materials group, which includes 237 different companies and currently sits at #15 in the Zacks Sector Rank. The Zacks Sector Rank includes 16 different groups and is listed in order from best to worst in terms of the average Zacks Rank of the individual companies within each of these sectors.

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

Within the past quarter, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for AVD's full-year earnings has moved 4.4% higher. This means that analyst sentiment is stronger and the stock's earnings outlook is improving.

Based on the latest available data, AVD has gained about 1.4% so far this year. Meanwhile, the Basic Materials sector has returned an average of -2.5% on a year-to-date basis. This means that American Vanguard is outperforming the sector as a whole this year.

Another stock in the Basic Materials sector, Ecolab (ECL - Free Report) , has outperformed the sector so far this year. The stock's year-to-date return is 13.2%.

The consensus estimate for Ecolab's current year EPS has increased 6.5% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy).

Looking more specifically, American Vanguard belongs to the Chemical - Specialty industry, which includes 33 individual stocks and currently sits at #85 in the Zacks Industry Rank. Stocks in this group have gained about 8.7% so far this year, so AVD is slightly underperforming its industry this group in terms of year-to-date returns. Ecolab is also part of the same industry.

American Vanguard and Ecolab 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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