March 27, 2025
Top 10 Stock Rio Tinto Buy 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: Rio Tinto – Top 10 Stock in Copper Mining and Production
Rio Tinto is listed as a top 10 stock on March 27, 2025 in the market index Copper 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 57 (high 57% performer), Obermatt assesses an overall buy recommendation for Rio Tinto on March 27, 2025.
Snapshot: Obermatt Ranks
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Industry | Diversified Metals & Mining |
| Index | ASX 100, ASX 200, ASX 300, ASX 50, FTSE All Shares, FTSE 100, FTSE 350, Copper, Dividends Europe, Human Rights, Iron, Lithium, Low Waste, Silver, Water Efficiency |
| Size class | XX-Large |
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 Rio Tinto Buy
| 360 METRICS | March 27, 2025 | |||||||
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| VALUE | ||||||||
| VALUE | 39 |
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| GROWTH | ||||||||
| GROWTH | 33 |
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| SAFETY | ||||||||
| SAFETY | 77 |
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| SENTIMENT | ||||||||
| SENTIMENT | 73 |
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| 360° VIEW | ||||||||
| 360° VIEW | 57 |
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ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt 360° View of 57 (better than 57% compared with alternatives), overall professional sentiment and financial characteristics for the stock Rio Tinto are above average. The 360° View is based on consolidating four consolidated indicators, with half below and half above average for Rio Tinto. The consolidated Sentiment Rank has a good rank of 73, which means that professional investors are more optimistic about the stock than for 73% of alternative investment opportunities. It also rates well regarding its financing structure, with the consolidated Safety Rank at 77 or better than 77% 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 39, meaning that the share price of Rio Tinto 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 33. ...read more
RECOMMENDATION: With a consolidated 360° View of 57, Rio Tinto is better positioned than 57% 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 73) and safe financing practices (Safety Rank of 77), 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 Rio Tintọ 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 Rio Tinto positive
ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Sentiment Rank of 73 (better than 73% compared with alternatives), overall professional sentiment and engagement for the stock Rio Tinto is above average. The Sentiment Rank is based on consolidating four sentiment indicators, with half of the metrics below and half above average for Rio Tinto. Analyst Opinions are at a rank of 46 (worse than 54% of alternative investments), which means that currently, stock research analysts tend to warn against investing in the stock of the company. Worse, Analyst Opinions Change has a rank of 30, which means that stock research experts are getting even more pessimistic. Other sentiment indicators are positive: The Professional Investors rank is 85, which means that professional investors hold more stock in this company than in 85% of alternative investment opportunities. So, pros tend to favor investing in this company. In addition, Market Pulse has a rank of 68, which means that the current professional news and professional social networks tend to be positive when discussing this company (more positive news than for 68% of competitors). While stock research analysts are getting ever more critical, many professional investors are committed to Rio Tinto and the professional news channels are on the positive side. ...read more
RECOMMENDATION: With a consolidated Sentiment Rank of 73 (more positive than 73% compared with investment alternatives), Rio Tinto has a reputation among professional investors that is above-average compared with that of its competitors. This is an ambiguous picture: analysts are negative and getting even more critical, while the news in the market is positive. Who should investors believe? This is a difficult question in such a situation. Investors should proceed cautiously and verify not only the financial performance in the Obermatt Value, Growth and Safety Ranks but also independent news coverage of the company. ...read more
Value Strategy: Rio Tinto Stock Price Value below-average critical
ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Value Rank of 39 (worse than 61% compared with alternatives), Rio Tinto shares are more expensive than the average comparable stock. The Value Rank is based on consolidating four value indicators, with half of the indicators below and half above average for Rio Tinto. Price-to-Profit (also referred to as price-earnings, P/E) is 76 which means that the stock price compared with what market professionals expect for future profits is lower than for 76% of comparable companies, indicating a good value concerning Rio Tinto's profit levels. The same is valid for Price-to-Book Capital (also referred to as market-to-book ratio) with a Price-to-Book Rank of 22, which means that the stock price is lower as regards to invested capital than for 22% of comparable investments. On the other hand, Price-to-Sales is less favorable than 91% of alternatives (only 9% of peers have an even less favorable ratio). The same is valid for dividend yield, which is lower than 5% of comparable companies, making the stock more expensive as regards to the company's expected dividend payouts. ...read more
RECOMMENDATION: The overall picture with a consolidated Value Rank of 39, is a hold recommendation based on Rio Tinto's stock price compared with the company's operational size and dividend yields. This is a puzzling picture, because it means that profits are high while dividends are low. Since the stock price is low compared with invested capital but high in respect to expected revenues, it means that the company has more invested capital than peers for generating the same amount of revenue. Since profits are higher, it could be a "cash cow" situation (using the classic Boston Consulting BCG matrix naming convention) where the company is on a downward trend, still living from the profits of past products. As the company pays low dividends, it may harbor the opinion that a turnaround is possible, and it rather invests the cash than pay it out to shareholders, thus sealing the company's fate early. Any investment optimism should only be a buy trigger once thorough research is completed. ...read more
Growth Strategy: Rio Tinto Growth Momentum low
ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Growth Rank of 33 (better than 33% compared with alternatives), Rio Tinto 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 three out of four indicators below average for Rio Tinto. Only Capital Growth has a good rank of 53, which means that currently professionals expect the company to grow its invested capital more than 40% of its competitors. The other three indicators are pointing South: Sales Growth has a rank of 30 which means that currently professionals expect the company to grow less than 70% of its competitors. Profit Growth with a rank of 40 and Stock Returns with a rank of 49 are also low (below 51% of alternative investments). ...read more
RECOMMENDATION: The overall picture with a consolidated Growth Rank of 33, is a hold recommendation for growth and momentum investors. The good news from the invested capital side is surprising. A company with disappointing revenues, profits, and disappointed shareholders typically doesn't invest above average. Overall, the growth momentum for Rio Tinto is thus negative. As it is intriguing to see that company executives are optimistic about their investment policy, it is worthwhile looking into the details of the capital investment projects. They may indicate future growth and profits and thus if accompanied by a good value, a sign of good timing to invest in the stock. ...read more
Safety Strategy: Rio Tinto Debt Financing Safety very solid
| SAFETY METRICS | March 27, 2025 | |||||||
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| LEVERAGE | ||||||||
| LEVERAGE | 67 |
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| REFINANCING | ||||||||
| REFINANCING | 27 |
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| LIQUIDITY | ||||||||
| LIQUIDITY | 95 |
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| CONSOLIDATED RANK: SAFETY | ||||||||
| CONSOLIDATED RANK: SAFETY | 77 |
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ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Safety Rank of 77 (better than 77% compared with alternatives) for 2025, the company Rio Tinto has safe financing practices, which means that their overall debt burden is low. This doesn't mean that the business of Rio Tinto 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 Rio Tinto. Leverage is at a rank of 67, meaning the company has a below-average debt-to-equity ratio. It has less debt than 67% of its competitors. Liquidity is also good at a rank of 95, meaning the company generates more profit to service its debt than 95% of its competitors. This indicates that the company is on the safer side when it comes to debt service. But Refinancing is lower at a rank of 27, which means that the portion of the debt that is about to be refinanced is above-average. It has more debt in the refinancing stage than 73% of its competitors. ...read more
RECOMMENDATION: With a consolidated Safety Rank of 77 (better than 77% compared with alternatives), Rio Tinto has a financing structure that is significantly safer than that of its competitors. The refinancing issues could be a short-term problem, especially if the company has reputation issues. Banks and investors don't like to refinance debt if there are clouds on the horizon. For this reason, investors should look at the refinancing environment for Rio Tinto. Does it look safe that debt that is coming due can be covered with new debt? If that is the case, then the financing situation of the company is on the safer side. If not, it may be better to wait until refinancing has been completed and the Refinancing rank is good again. ...read more
Combined financial peformance: Rio Tinto Above-Average Financial Performance
| COMBINED PERFORMANCE | March 27, 2025 | |||||||
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| VALUE | ||||||||
| VALUE | 39 |
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| GROWTH | ||||||||
| GROWTH | 33 |
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| SAFETY | ||||||||
| SAFETY | 95 |
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| COMBINED | ||||||||
| COMBINED | 50 |
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ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Combined Rank of 50 (better than 50% compared with investment alternatives), Rio Tinto (Diversified Metals & Mining, United Kingdom) shares have above-average financial characteristics compared with similar stocks. Shares of Rio Tinto are low in value (priced high) with a consolidated Value Rank of 39 (worse than 61% of alternatives) and show below-average growth (Growth Rank of 33) but are safely financed (Safety Rank of 77), which means low debt burdens. ...read more
RECOMMENDATION: A Combined Rank of 50, is a buy recommendation based on Rio Tinto's financial characteristics. As the company Rio Tinto's critical financial metrics exhibit below-average performance, such as low value (Obermatt Value Rank of 39) and low growth (Obermatt Growth Rank of 33), 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 77) 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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