April 10, 2025
Top 10 Stock Freeport-McMoRan Hold Recommendation
How to read the ranks
For every stock, we judge its performance against its peers and rank it on a scale of 1 to 100. The higher the rank, the better the stock performs than its peers. And, we do this for six investment strategies:
Value - shows how good of a value the stock is. Green is "inexpensive"; red is "expensive".
Growth - shows a company's growth potential. Green is "high growth" expected; red is "tough times ahead".
Safety - relates to the amount of debt a company has. Green is low debt level; red is high debt level.
Combined Financial - this isn't an average of the first three ranks but rather a consolidated view across several financial indicators. Green = good; red = tread carefully.
(NEW) Sentiment - quantifies professional analyst ratings and holdings as well as market pulse. Green = positive sentiment; red = skepticism (Only available to Premium Subscribers).
(NEW) 360° View - the ultimate rating with all financial and non-financial indicators.
Snapshot: Freeport-McMoRan – Top 10 Stock in Low Waste Leaders
Freeport-McMoRan is listed as a top 10 stock on April 10, 2025 in the market index Low Waste because of its high performance in at least one of the Obermatt investment strategies. Two consolidated Obermatt Ranks are above-average. The company is safely financed and the professional investor sentiment is positive. Both are encouraging signals for a stock purchase decision, albeit at an above-average share price. Based on the Obermatt 360° View of 42 (42% performer), Obermatt assesses an overall hold recommendation for Freeport-McMoRan on April 10, 2025.
Snapshot: Obermatt Ranks
When Obermatt identifies the Top 10 stocks in a market, it’s based on a certain investment strategy. The best performing stocks usually aren’t the ones that everyone is talking about (those are often "over-priced" and have low Value ranks).
For each investment strategy, we provide you with more detailed analysis and our recommendation. You see the ranks of the top 10 stocks ranked by that particular investment strategy (360° View, Sentiment, Value, Growth, Safety and Combined Financial Performance).
360° View: Obermatt 360° View Freeport-McMoRan Hold
| 360 METRICS | April 10, 2025 | |||||||
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| VALUE | ||||||||
| VALUE | 28 |
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| GROWTH | ||||||||
| GROWTH | 25 |
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| SAFETY | ||||||||
| SAFETY | 51 |
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| SENTIMENT | ||||||||
| SENTIMENT | 97 |
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| 360° VIEW | ||||||||
| 360° VIEW | 42 |
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ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt 360° View of 42 (better than 42% compared with alternatives), overall professional sentiment and financial characteristics for the stock Freeport-McMoRan are below the industry average. The 360° View is based on consolidating four consolidated indicators, with half below and half above average for Freeport-McMoRan. The consolidated Sentiment Rank has a good rank of 97, which means that professional investors are more optimistic about the stock than for 97% of alternative investment opportunities. It also rates well regarding its financing structure, with the consolidated Safety Rank at 51 or better than 51% of its peers when looking at the amount of its debt, its refinancing requirements, and its ability to service debt. But the stock is expensive and expects low growth. The consolidated Value Rank is only 28, meaning that the share price of Freeport-McMoRan is on the high side, compared with indicators such as revenues, profits, and invested capital. The company exhibits below-average growth momentum when looking at financial metrics such as revenue, profit, invested capital growth,and stock returns, with its Growth Rank at 25. ...read more
RECOMMENDATION: With a consolidated 360° View of 42, Freeport-McMoRan is worse than 58% of all alternative stock investment opportunities based on the Obermatt Method. As only half of the consolidated Obermatt Ranks exhibit excellent performance, namely the positive professional market sentiment (Sentiment Rank of 97) and safe financing practices (Safety Rank of 51), the case for investing in this stock needs further thought. The Value and the Safety Ranks are below average. The Safety Rank is the least critical of the four consolidated ranks, because it only reflects financing practices. So the question is: How to assess below-average value against above-average sentiment? This may be a case where growth is in the future, not yet reflected in current performance. Companies that might fall into this category are those with intellectual property, such as technology and pharmaceutical companies. In early phases, they are expensive relative to their size and have a lot of capital on their books, as is the case here. Investors expect a better future and are willing to pay a higher price than is warranted by the current company size. These higher prices drive stock price value down in the short term. In this case, future growth may be the strongest driver of the investment case, reflected by institutional investors' opinions. With a weak Value Rank, the question is how much to sacrifice value at the cost of positive sentiment. Sometimes market sentiment is just hype, but sometimes it is right. You pay more than market-average for this stock, but it may be worth it, if the future of Freeport-McMoRaṇ is bright. Prudent investors may only want to invest a smaller portion of their wealth in such situations. Young investors can carry more risk but should still thrive for sufficient diversification. ...read more
Sentiment Strategy: Professional Market Sentiment for Freeport-McMoRan very positive
ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Sentiment Rank of 97 (better than 97% compared with alternatives) for 2025, overall professional sentiment and engagement for the stock Freeport-McMoRan is very positive. The Sentiment Rank is based on consolidating four sentiment indicators, with all four indicators above average for Freeport-McMoRan. Analyst Opinions are at a rank of 50 (better than 50% of alternative investments), which means that, currently, stock research analysts tend to recommend a stock investment in the company. Analyst Opinions Change is also positive with a rank of 87, which means that stock research experts are changing their opinions for the better and recommending investing in the company. They are getting more optimistic about stock investments in Freeport-McMoRan. The Professional Investors rank is 91, which means that currently, professional investors hold more stock in this company than in 91% of alternative investment opportunities. Pros tend to favor investing in this company. Finally, Market Pulse has a rank of 100 which means that the current professional news and professional social networks are on the positive side when discussing this company (more positive news than for 100% of competitors). ...read more
RECOMMENDATION: With a consolidated Sentiment Rank of 97 (more positive than 97% compared with investment alternatives), Freeport-McMoRan has a reputation among professional investors that is significantly higher than that of its competitors. Since all market sentiment indicators are positive, the professional community highly recommends investment in the company. Does this mean Freeport-McMoRan stocks are a safe investment? Far from it. Even professionals make mistakes. Especially in stock investing, there is a tendency to follow the leaders. Since trees don't grow to the heavens, such positive sentiment may also be interpreted as a danger sign. A lot of optimism can often be a sign of troubles to come, albeit unforeseen by most. ...read more
Value Strategy: Freeport-McMoRan Stock Price Value below-average critical
ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Value Rank of 28 (worse than 72% compared with alternatives), Freeport-McMoRan shares are more expensive than the average comparable stock. The Value Rank is based on consolidating four value indicators, where half the indicators are below and half above average for Freeport-McMoRan. Price-to-Sales (P/S) is 50, which means that the stock price compared with what market professionals expect for future sales is lower than for 50% of comparable companies, indicating a good value concerning Freeport-McMoRan's revenue size. The same is valid for dividend yields with a Dividend Yield rank of 52, which means that dividends are expected to be higher than for 52% of comparable investments. On the other hand, the Price-to-Book Capital ratio (also referred to as market-to-book ratio) is less favorable than for 85% of alternatives (only 15% of peers have an even higher ratio). The same is valid for the Price-to-Profit (or Price / Earnings, P/E) ratio, which is higher than for 75% of comparable companies, making the stock more expensive compared with the company's expected profit levels. ...read more
RECOMMENDATION: The overall picture with a consolidated Value Rank of 28, is a hold recommendation based on Freeport-McMoRan's stock price compared with the company's operational size and dividend yields. This is a somewhat surprising picture, because it means that profits are low while dividends are high. One interpretation could be that profits are expected to increase, justifying the high dividend payments. But it could also mean that the company desperately keeps the high dividends to avoid a collapsing share price. This would be a rather dangerous constellation. ...read more
Growth Strategy: Freeport-McMoRan Growth Momentum low
ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Growth Rank of 25 (better than 25% compared with alternatives), Freeport-McMoRan shows a below-average growth dynamic in its industry. There is limited momentum in this company. The Growth Rank is based on consolidating four value indicators, with half of the indicators below and half above average for Freeport-McMoRan. Sales Growth has a rank of 69 which means that currently, professionals expect the company to grow more than 69% of its competitors. Capital Growth is also above 27% of competitors with a rank of 63. But Profit Growth only has a rank of 27, which means that currently professionals expect the company to grow its profits less than 73% of its competitors. And Stock Returns have also been below average with a rank of only 10. ...read more
RECOMMENDATION: The overall picture with a consolidated Growth Rank of 25, is a hold recommendation for growth and momentum investors. Profits are sometimes low if the company invests in the future. The positive revenue and capital investment outlook confirms such an interpretation. Both revenues and capital are solid growth indicators, and lower profits in such a case would be encouraging. But the investors see it differently by punishing the share price. Sometimes, Mister Market is not very reliable, because it is not uncommon for it to be volatile. Investors should look out for signs of growth expenditure that could justify low profit growth, and they may also find reasons why recent stock price developments don't confirm the growth outlook of operations. While operating growth indicators are not perfect, they are more reliable indicators for future performance than stock prices that can repeatedly surprise investors. ...read more
Safety Strategy: Freeport-McMoRan Debt Financing Safety above-average
| SAFETY METRICS | April 10, 2025 | |||||||
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| LEVERAGE | ||||||||
| LEVERAGE | 44 |
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| REFINANCING | ||||||||
| REFINANCING | 59 |
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| LIQUIDITY | ||||||||
| LIQUIDITY | 57 |
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| CONSOLIDATED RANK: SAFETY | ||||||||
| CONSOLIDATED RANK: SAFETY | 51 |
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ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Safety Rank of 51 (better than 51% compared with alternatives), the company Freeport-McMoRan has financing practices on the safer side, which mean that their overall debt burden is lower than average. This doesn't mean that the business of Freeport-McMoRan is safe, it only means that the company is on the safer side regarding possible bankruptcy, assuming that public reporting is correct. The Safety Rank is based on consolidating three financing indicators, with two out of three indicators above-average for Freeport-McMoRan. Refinancing is at 59, meaning the portion of the debt that is about to be refinanced is below average. It has less debt in the refinancing stage than 59% of its competitors. Liquidity is also good at 57, meaning the company generates more profit to service its debt than 57% of its competitors. This indicates that the company is safer when it comes to debt service. However, Leverage is rather large at 44, which means the company has an above-average debt-to-equity ratio. It has more debt than 56% of its competitors. ...read more
RECOMMENDATION: With a consolidated Safety Rank of 51 (better than 51% compared with alternatives), Freeport-McMoRan has a financing structure that is safer than that of its competitors. This is not bad if things go well. The higher debt level means better returns to shareholders if things go well. Many top-performing companies operate with higher debt levels, and Freeport-McMoRan could be in that group. But if you expect the environment to turn rougher, the higher leverage could become a problem. The same is valid if you expect interest rates to rise. That could squeeze shareholder returns, which so far have benefitted from better conditions. ...read more
Combined financial peformance: Freeport-McMoRan Lowest Financial Performance
| COMBINED PERFORMANCE | April 10, 2025 | |||||||
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| VALUE | ||||||||
| VALUE | 28 |
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| GROWTH | ||||||||
| GROWTH | 25 |
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| SAFETY | ||||||||
| SAFETY | 57 |
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| COMBINED | ||||||||
| COMBINED | 12 |
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ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Combined Rank of 12 (worse than 88% compared with investment alternatives), Freeport-McMoRan (Copper, USA) shares have lower financial characteristics compared with similar stocks. Shares of Freeport-McMoRan are low in value (priced high) with a consolidated Value Rank of 28 (worse than 72% of alternatives) and show below-average growth (Growth Rank of 25) but are safely financed (Safety Rank of 51), which means low debt burdens. ...read more
RECOMMENDATION: A Combined Rank of 12, is a sell recommendation based on Freeport-McMoRan's financial characteristics. As the company Freeport-McMoRan's critical financial metrics exhibit below-average performance, such as low value (Obermatt Value Rank of 28) and low growth (Obermatt Growth Rank of 25), it is a somewhat questionable stock investment, where the risk of paying too much for the shares is significant, unless the company has an exceptionally bright future. In this case, good financing practices (Obermatt Safety Rank of 51) are a positive sign, because it may allow the company to weather challenging times until the hoped-for cash flows materialize. This may be true for high-tech or biotechnology companies with enough cash to sustain prolonged business development. If they own properties that only provide cash flows in the future, the stock may look excessively expensive and unattractive today. In such cases, the Obermatt Method has limited value, as it is based on facts we can observe today. If the facts lie all in the future, stock investing becomes guesswork, and this should only be a driver in a limited number of investments that account for a small fraction of a safe portfolio. ...read more
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