Is McEwen Inc. (MUX) Outperforming Other Basic Materials Stocks This Year?

Investors interested in Basic Materials stocks should always be looking to find the best-performing companies in the group. McEwen (MUX) 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.

McEwen is one of 255 individual stocks in the Basic Materials sector. Collectively, these companies sit at #1 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 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. McEwen is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).

Over the past 90 days, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for MUX's full-year earnings has moved 9200% higher. This signals that analyst sentiment is improving and the stock's earnings outlook is more positive.

Based on the latest available data, MUX has gained about 32% so far this year. In comparison, Basic Materials companies have returned an average of 15.3%. This shows that McEwen is outperforming its peers so far this year.

Another Basic Materials stock, which has outperformed the sector so far this year, is Hochschild Mining PLC (HCHDF). The stock has returned 24.4% year-to-date.

In Hochschild Mining PLC's case, the consensus EPS estimate for the current year increased 41.4% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).

Looking more specifically, McEwen belongs to the Mining - Miscellaneous industry, which includes 73 individual stocks and currently sits at #47 in the Zacks Industry Rank. On average, stocks in this group have gained 17.2% this year, meaning that MUX is performing better in terms of year-to-date returns.

On the other hand, Hochschild Mining PLC belongs to the Mining - Silver industry. This 9-stock industry is currently ranked #12. The industry has moved +20.8% year to date.

Investors interested in the Basic Materials sector may want to keep a close eye on McEwen and Hochschild Mining PLC as they attempt to continue their solid performance.

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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).

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