Is MP Materials Corp. (MP) Outperforming Other Basic Materials Stocks This Year?
For those looking to find strong Basic Materials stocks, it is prudent to search for companies in the group that are outperforming their peers. Has MP Materials Corp. (MP) been one of those stocks this year? 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.
MP Materials Corp. is one of 242 individual stocks in the Basic Materials sector. Collectively, these companies sit at #6 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 is a successful stock-picking model that emphasizes earnings estimates and estimate revisions. The system highlights a number of different stocks that could be poised to outperform the broader market over the next one to three months. MP Materials Corp. is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #1 (Strong Buy).
Over the past three months, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for MP's full-year earnings has moved 28.7% higher. This means that analyst sentiment is stronger and the stock's earnings outlook is improving.
According to our latest data, MP has moved about 24.4% on a year-to-date basis. At the same time, Basic Materials stocks have gained an average of 15.3%. As we can see, MP Materials Corp. is performing better than its sector in the calendar year.
Another stock in the Basic Materials sector, Westlake Chemical (WLK), has outperformed the sector so far this year. The stock's year-to-date return is 29.9%.
The consensus estimate for Westlake Chemical's current year EPS has increased 23.2% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).
To break things down more, MP Materials Corp. belongs to the Mining - Miscellaneous industry, a group that includes 50 individual companies and currently sits at #76 in the Zacks Industry Rank. This group has gained an average of 28.3% so far this year, so MP is slightly underperforming its industry in this area.
On the other hand, Westlake Chemical belongs to the Chemical - Plastic industry. This 3-stock industry is currently ranked #53. The industry has moved +21.9% year to date.
Going forward, investors interested in Basic Materials stocks should continue to pay close attention to MP Materials Corp. and Westlake Chemical as they could maintain their solid performance.
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