Investors interested in Basic Materials stocks should always be looking to find the best-performing companies in the group. Is United States Steel (X) 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.United States Steel is a member of the Basic Materials sector. This group includes 251 individual stocks and currently holds a Zacks Sector Rank of #3. 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 system that emphasizes earnings estimates and estimate revisions, highlighting a variety of stocks that are displaying the right characteristics to beat the market over the next one to three months. X is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #1 (Strong Buy).Within the past quarter, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for X's full-year earnings has moved 104.11% higher. This shows that analyst sentiment has improved and the company's earnings outlook is stronger.Our latest available data shows that X has returned about 38.34% since the start of the calendar year. At the same time, Basic Materials stocks have gained an average of 18.90%. This shows that United States Steel is outperforming its peers so far this year.To break things down more, X belongs to the Steel - Producers industry, a group that includes 24 individual companies and currently sits at #7 in the Zacks Industry Rank. This group has gained an average of 45.44% so far this year, so X is slightly underperforming its industry in this area.X will likely be looking to continue its solid performance, so investors interested in Basic Materials stocks should continue to pay close attention to the company. More Stock News: This Is Bigger than the iPhone! It could become the mother of all technological revolutions. Apple sold a mere 1 billion iPhones in 10 years but a new breakthrough is expected to generate more than 77 billion devices by 2025, creating a $1.3 trillion market. Zacks has just released a Special Report that spotlights this fast-emerging phenomenon and 4 tickers for taking advantage of it. If you don't buy now, you may kick yourself in 2022.Click here for the 4 trades >>Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report United States Steel Corporation (X): Free Stock Analysis Report To read this article on Zacks.com click here. Zacks Investment Research