Investors interested in Basic Materials stocks should always be looking to find the best-performing companies in the group. Has Kronos Worldwide (KRO) 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.

Kronos Worldwide is a member of the Basic Materials sector. This group includes 236 individual stocks and currently holds a Zacks Sector Rank of #15. 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 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. Kronos Worldwide is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).

Over the past 90 days, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for KRO's full-year earnings has moved 3.9% higher. This is a sign of improving analyst sentiment and a positive earnings outlook trend.

According to our latest data, KRO has moved about 13.2% on a year-to-date basis. Meanwhile, the Basic Materials sector has returned an average of -6.3% on a year-to-date basis. This shows that Kronos Worldwide is outperforming its peers so far this year.

One other Basic Materials stock that has outperformed the sector so far this year is Lundin Mining (LUNMF). The stock is up 10.4% year-to-date.

In Lundin Mining's case, the consensus EPS estimate for the current year increased 8.8% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).

Breaking things down more, Kronos Worldwide is a member of the Chemical - Diversified industry, which includes 29 individual companies and currently sits at #223 in the Zacks Industry Rank. Stocks in this group have lost about 4.7% so far this year, so KRO is performing better this group in terms of year-to-date returns.

In contrast, Lundin Mining falls under the Mining - Non Ferrous industry. Currently, this industry has 12 stocks and is ranked #86. Since the beginning of the year, the industry has moved +6%.

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

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