Sifting through countless of stocks in the Metals & Mining industry can be tedious, and sometimes two stocks are just too similar to judge which is the better investment. If you’re on the fence about investing in Freeport-McMoRan Inc. or Rio Tinto Group because you’re not sure how they measure up, it’s important to compare them on a few factors before making your decision.

Read on to learn how Freeport-McMoRan Inc. and Rio Tinto Group compare based on key financial metrics to determine which better meets your investment needs.

About Freeport-McMoRan Inc. and Rio Tinto Group

Freeport-McMoRan Inc. engages in the mining of mineral properties in North America, South America, and Indonesia. The company primarily explores for copper, gold, molybdenum, silver, and other metals. Its assets include the Grasberg minerals district in Indonesia; Morenci, Bagdad, Safford, Sierrita, and Miami in Arizona; Chino and Tyrone in New Mexico; and Henderson and Climax in Colorado, North America, as well as Cerro Verde in Peru and El Abra in Chile. The company was formerly known as Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold Inc. and changed its name to Freeport-McMoRan Inc. in July 2014. The company was incorporated in 1987 and is headquartered in Phoenix, Arizona.

Rio Tinto Group engages in exploring, mining, and processing mineral resources worldwide. The company operates through Iron Ore; Aluminium and lithium; and Copper segments. The Iron Ore segment engages in the iron ore mining, and salt and gypsum production in Western Australia. The Aluminum and lithium segment is involved in bauxite mining; alumina refining; and aluminium smelting, and recycling, as well as mining and processing of lithium. The Copper segment engages in mining and refining of copper, gold, silver, molybdenum, and other by-products and exploration activities. It also owns and operates open pit and underground mines; and refineries, smelters, processing plants and power, and shipping facilities. The company was founded in 1873 and is headquartered in London, the United Kingdom.

Latest Metals & Mining and Freeport-McMoRan Inc., Rio Tinto Group Stock News

As of June 5, 2026, Freeport-McMoRan Inc. had a $91.1 billion market capitalization, compared to the Metals & Mining median of $2.1 million. Freeport-McMoRan Inc.’s stock is up 24.8% in 2026, down 3.6% in the previous five trading days and up 55.09% in the past year.

Currently, Freeport-McMoRan Inc.’s price-earnings ratio is 33.5. Freeport-McMoRan Inc.’s trailing 12-month revenue is $26.4 billion with a 10.3% net profit margin. Year-over-year quarterly sales growth most recently was 8.8%. Analysts expect adjusted earnings to reach $2.643 per share for the current fiscal year. Freeport-McMoRan Inc. currently has a 0.9% dividend yield.

As of June 5, 2026, Rio Tinto Group had a $176.8 billion market cap, putting it in the 98th percentile of all stocks. Rio Tinto Group’s stock is up 25.8% in 2026, down 5.4% in the previous five trading days and up 71.97% in the past year.

Currently, Rio Tinto Group’s price-earnings ratio is 16.5. Rio Tinto Group’s trailing 12-month revenue is $57.6 billion with a 17.3% net profit margin. Year-over-year quarterly sales growth most recently was 14.6%. There are no analysts providing consensus earnings estimates for the current fiscal year. Rio Tinto Group currently has a 5.0% dividend yield.

How We Compare Freeport-McMoRan Inc. and Rio Tinto Group Stock Grades

Stock evaluation requires access to huge amounts of data and the knowledge and time to sift through it all, make sense of financial ratios, read income statements and analyze recent stock movements. AAII created A+ Investor, a robust data suite that condenses data research in an actionable and customizable way suitable for investors of all knowledge levels, to help investors streamline and work through such data.

AAII’s proprietary stock grades come with A+ Investor. These offer intuitive A‐F grades for each of five key investing factors: value, growth, momentum, earnings estimate revisions and quality. Here, we’ll take a closer look at Freeport-McMoRan Inc. and Rio Tinto Group’s stock grades to see how they measure up against one another.

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Freeport-McMoRan Inc. and Rio Tinto Group Stock Value Grades

Company	Ticker	Value
Freeport-McMoRan Inc.	FCX	D
Rio Tinto Group	RIO	B

Successful stock investing involves buying low and selling high, so stock valuation is an important consideration for stock selection.

Buying stocks that are going to go up typically means buying stocks that are undervalued in the first place, although momentum investors may argue that point.

AAII’s A+ Investor Value Grade derives from a stock’s value score. The Value Score is the percentile rank of the average of the percentile ranks of the price-to-sales ratio, price-earnings ratio, enterprise-value-to-EBITDA (EV/EBITDA) ratio, shareholder yield, price-to-book-value ratio and price-to-free-cash-flow ratio. The score is variable, meaning it can consider all six ratios or, should any of the six ratios not be valid, the remaining ratios that are valid. To be assigned a Value Score, stocks must have a valid (non-null) ratio and corresponding ranking for at least two of the six valuation ratios.

Stocks with a Value Score from 81 to 100 are considered deep value, those with a score between 61 and 80 are a good value and so on.

Freeport-McMoRan Inc. has a Value Score of 26, which is Expensive. Rio Tinto Group has a Value Score of 66, which is Value.

The Value Stock Winner: Rio Tinto Group

As you can clearly see from the Value Grade breakdown above, Rio Tinto Group is considered to have better value than Freeport-McMoRan Inc.. For investors who focus solely on a company’s valuation, Rio Tinto Group could be a good stock to add to their portfolio. However, it’s important for investors to analyze multiple factors based on a wide range of metrics before deciding whether to buy.

Freeport-McMoRan Inc. and Rio Tinto Group’s Quality Grades

Company	Ticker	Quality
Freeport-McMoRan Inc.	FCX	B
Rio Tinto Group	RIO	C

Like the Value Grade, AAII’s A+ Investor Quality Grade comes from the percentile rank of key metrics. Specifically, the Quality Score is the percentile rank of the average of the percentile ranks of return on assets (ROA), return on invested capital (ROIC), gross profit relative to assets, buyback yield, change in total liabilities to assets, accruals, Z double prime bankruptcy risk (Z) score and the F-Score.

The score is variable, meaning it can consider all eight measures or, should any of the eight measures not be valid, the remaining measures that are valid. To be assigned a Quality Score, stocks must have a valid (non-null) measure and corresponding ranking for at least four of the eight quality measures.

The Quality Score is used to assess the underlying “quality” of a particular stock. A higher-quality stock possesses traits associated with upside potential and reduced downside risk. Backtesting of the Quality Grade shows that stocks with higher grades, on average, outperformed stocks with lower grades over the period of 1998 through 2019.

Stocks receive better grades (higher scores) for having higher scores for the quality subcomponents and worse grades (lower scores) for lower scores for the subcomponents.

Freeport-McMoRan Inc. has a Quality Score of 77, which is Strong. Rio Tinto Group has a Quality Score of 53, which is Average.

The Quality Grade Winner: Freeport-McMoRan Inc.

As you can clearly see from the Quality Grade breakdown above, Freeport-McMoRan Inc. has a better overall quality grade than Rio Tinto Group. For investors who are looking for companies with higher quality than others in the same industry, Freeport-McMoRan Inc. could be a good stock to add to their portfolios. However, it’s important for investors to analyze multiple factors based on a wide range of metrics before deciding whether to buy.

Freeport-McMoRan Inc. and Rio Tinto Group’s Estimate Revisions Grades

Company	Ticker	Earnings Estimate
Freeport-McMoRan Inc.	FCX	C
Rio Tinto Group	RIO	na

Earnings estimate revisions scores consider the magnitude of a company’s earnings surprise in its last two reported fiscal quarters. Often, positive surprises beget further positive surprises‐or at least continued sales growth (the exact opposite is generally true, too).

Estimate revisions offer an indication of what analysts are thinking about the short-term prospects of a firm. Estimate revisions are based on the statistical significance of a firm’s last two quarterly earnings surprises and the percentage change in its consensus estimate for the current fiscal year over the past month and past three months.

Freeport-McMoRan Inc. has a Earnings Estimate Score of 51, which is Neutral. Rio Tinto Group does not have a meaningful Earnings Estimate Score.

The Earnings Estimate Revisions Stock Winner: No Clear Winner

Neither Freeport-McMoRan Inc. or Rio Tinto Group has an Earnings Estimate Revisions Grade that could be considered a “winner.” Investors considering these companies should do additional due diligence and research to see if either could be a good addition to their portfolios. It’s important to look at a wide range of financial metrics in order to determine if Freeport-McMoRan Inc. or Rio Tinto Group is the better investment when it comes to estimate revisions.

Other Freeport-McMoRan Inc. and Rio Tinto Group Grades

In addition to Quality, Estimate Revisions and Value, A+ Investor also provides grades for Growth and Momentum.

Momentum grades help uncover stocks experiencing anomalously high rates of return; research finds that stocks with high relative levels of momentum tend to outperform, whereas those with low levels of momentum tend to continue underperforming.

Growth investing builds on the idea that stocks of companies exhibiting strong, consistent and prolonged growth outperform those of slower-growth companies. AAII measures growth through consistency of annual sales growth, five-year sales growth rankings adjusted for extreme levels, and consistency of positive annual cash from operations.

These 2 key factors, when combined with the above, provide a holistic view into a particular stock. Further, by joining A+ Investor you can see whether Freeport-McMoRan Inc. and Rio Tinto Group pass any of our 60+ stock screens that have outperformed the market since their creation.

So, Which Is the Better Investment, Freeport-McMoRan Inc. or Rio Tinto Group Stock?

Overall, Freeport-McMoRan Inc. stock has a Value Score of 26, Estimate Revisions Score of 51 and Quality Score of 77.

Rio Tinto Group stock has a Value Score of 66, Estimate Revisions Score of and Quality Score of 53.

Comparing Freeport-McMoRan Inc. and Rio Tinto Group’s grades, scores and metrics can act as a solid basis to determine whether they may be a good investment or not. You’ll also want to look at your portfolio’s asset allocation as well as your risk tolerance and financial goals to see if either of these stocks would make a good fit for you. AAII can help you figure out which investments align with your individual needs and preferences.

Investors are encouraged to do their own due diligence and research. In this way, individuals can effectively become managers of their own assets‐without having to rely on others for financial independence. You can count on AAII for timeless articles on financial planning and stock-picking, unbiased research and actionable analysis.

A+ Investor adds to our qualitative teaching with a powerful data suite to help you whittle down investment choices to find stocks, exchange-traded funds (ETFs) or mutual funds that meet your needs.

AAII Disclaimer

We make no representations or warranties that any investor will, or is likely to, achieve profits similar to those shown, because past, hypothetical or simulated performance is not necessarily indicative of future results. Before making an investment decision, you should consider your circumstances and whether the information on our content is applicable to your situation. This information was prepared in good faith, and we accept no liability for any errors or omissions. The full disclaimer can be read here.