Investors interested in Basic Materials stocks should always be looking to find the best-performing companies in the group. Is AngloGold Ashanti (AU) one of those stocks right now? 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.
AngloGold Ashanti is one of 247 individual stocks in the Basic Materials sector. Collectively, these companies sit at #14 in 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 is a proven model that highlights a variety of stocks with the right characteristics to outperform the market over the next one to three months. The system emphasizes earnings estimate revisions and favors companies with improving earnings outlooks. AU is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #1 (Strong Buy).
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for AU's full-year earnings has moved 41.36% higher within the past quarter. This signals that analyst sentiment is improving and the stock's earnings outlook is more positive.
Our latest available data shows that AU has returned about 51.31% since the start of the calendar year. At the same time, Basic Materials stocks have gained an average of 5.79%. This shows that AngloGold Ashanti is outperforming its peers so far this year.
Looking more specifically, AU belongs to the Mining - Gold industry, a group that includes 35 individual stocks and currently sits at #9 in the Zacks Industry Rank. Stocks in this group have gained about 38.07% so far this year, so AU is performing better this group in terms of year-to-date returns.
Investors in the Basic Materials sector will want to keep a close eye on AU as it attempts to continue its solid performance.
AngloGold Ashanti Limited (AU): Free Stock Analysis Report
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Zacks Investment Research