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Is Axalta Coating Systems (AXTA) Stock Outpacing Its Basic Materials Peers This Year?

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For those looking to find strong Basic Materials stocks, it is prudent to search for companies in the group that are outperforming their peers. Axalta Coating Systems (AXTA - 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? Let's take a closer look at the stock's year-to-date performance to find out.

Axalta Coating Systems is a member of the Basic Materials sector. This group includes 275 individual stocks and currently holds a Zacks Sector Rank of #12. 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 is a proven system that emphasizes earnings estimates and estimate revisions, highlighting a variety of stocks that are displaying the right characteristics to beat the market over the next one to three months. Axalta Coating Systems is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).

Within the past quarter, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for AXTA's full-year earnings has moved 0.3% higher. This signals that analyst sentiment is improving and the stock's earnings outlook is more positive.

Our latest available data shows that AXTA has returned about 9.7% since the start of the calendar year. In comparison, Basic Materials companies have returned an average of 8.1%. As we can see, Axalta Coating Systems is performing better than its sector in the calendar year.

Carpenter Technology (CRS - Free Report) is another Basic Materials stock that has outperformed the sector so far this year. Since the beginning of the year, the stock has returned 78%.

For Carpenter Technology, the consensus EPS estimate for the current year has increased 6.6% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy).

Breaking things down more, Axalta Coating Systems is a member of the Chemical - Specialty industry, which includes 46 individual companies and currently sits at #92 in the Zacks Industry Rank. This group has gained an average of 13% so far this year, so AXTA is slightly underperforming its industry in this area.

On the other hand, Carpenter Technology belongs to the Steel - Speciality industry. This 6-stock industry is currently ranked #4. The industry has moved +66.8% year to date.

Axalta Coating Systems and Carpenter Technology 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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