Investors interested in Basic Materials stocks should always be looking to find the best-performing companies in the group. Agnico Eagle Mines (AEM) 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.

Agnico Eagle Mines is one of 232 companies in the Basic Materials group. The Basic Materials group currently sits at #6 within the Zacks Sector Rank. 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 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. Agnico Eagle Mines is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #1 (Strong Buy).

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for AEM's full-year earnings has moved 29.8% higher within the past quarter. This signals that analyst sentiment is improving and the stock's earnings outlook is more positive.

Based on the latest available data, AEM has gained about 43.9% so far this year. At the same time, Basic Materials stocks have gained an average of 6.7%. This means that Agnico Eagle Mines is outperforming the sector as a whole this year.

Dundee Precious Metals Inc. (DPMLF) is another Basic Materials stock that has outperformed the sector so far this year. Since the beginning of the year, the stock has returned 51.9%.

Over the past three months, Dundee Precious Metals Inc.'s consensus EPS estimate for the current year has increased 13.8%. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy).

Looking more specifically, Agnico Eagle Mines belongs to the Mining - Gold industry, which includes 39 individual stocks and currently sits at #12 in the Zacks Industry Rank. Stocks in this group have gained about 43.2% so far this year, so AEM is performing better this group in terms of year-to-date returns. Dundee Precious Metals Inc. is also part of the same industry.

Agnico Eagle Mines and Dundee Precious Metals Inc. 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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Agnico Eagle Mines Limited (AEM):Free Stock Analysis Report

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Dundee Precious Metals Inc. (DPMLF):Free Stock Analysis Report

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

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