The Best Investing Ideas in Basic Materials

Chasing highfliers is a sucker's game. But tracking monthly trends across the market can lead to great investment ideas, as well as shed new light on stocks you already have in your portfolio.

Let's take a look at the biggest movers in Basic Materials. These stocks -- which include companies from the oil, gas, and consumable fuels; energy equipment and service; and metals and mining sectors -- have clocked some of the biggest gains during the last month.

Basic Materials market movers

Those returns are certainly eye-catching. But do these high fliers have staying power?

Let's see what The Motley Fool CAPS community (more than 140,000 investors strong) has to say about the best plays in the Basic Materials market. 

And the next big winners are...
The following Basic Material stocks are of similar size in comparable industries to the ones in the previous chart. However, these are companies CAPS members think have more promising future returns than the ones already making waves.

CAPS Community Basic Material Favorites

Of course, some of today's winners might continue to rack up outsize returns. But isn't it better to snag tomorrow's winners before they start running up?

Find out if your hot stocks still have sizzle
How do your stocks compare to the CAPS community's best investment ideas? Find out in an instant by plugging your tickers into the completely free Motley Fool Stocks 360 program. You'll also get a thorough analysis of how your investments are faring against multiple peer benchmarks. Find out whether you should trade in, trade up, or sit tight by getting a quick 360-degree diagnostic right now.