Critical Contrast: MAC Copper (NYSE:MTAL) & Rio Tinto (NYSE:RIO)

Rio Tinto (NYSE:RIO) and MAC Copper (NYSE:MTAL) are both materials companies, but which is the superior business? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, risk, earnings, institutional ownership, valuation, dividends and profitability.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

19.3% of Rio Tinto shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 87.5% of MAC Copper shares are owned by institutional investors. 1.8% of MAC Copper shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Profitability

This table compares Rio Tinto and MAC Copper’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Rio Tinto	N/A	N/A	N/A
MAC Copper	N/A	N/A	N/A

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of current ratings for Rio Tinto and MAC Copper, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Rio Tinto	2	7	6	1	2.38
MAC Copper	1	0	0	1	2.50

Rio Tinto currently has a consensus price target of $105.50, indicating a potential upside of 9.09%. Given Rio Tinto’s higher probable upside, equities research analysts clearly believe Rio Tinto is more favorable than MAC Copper.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Rio Tinto and MAC Copper”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Rio Tinto	$57.64 billion	2.11	$9.97 billion	N/A	N/A
MAC Copper	$321.80 million	0.97	-$81.69 million	N/A	N/A

Rio Tinto has higher revenue and earnings than MAC Copper.

Volatility & Risk

Rio Tinto has a beta of 0.58, indicating that its share price is 42% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, MAC Copper has a beta of 0.37, indicating that its share price is 63% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

Rio Tinto beats MAC Copper on 6 of the 9 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Rio Tinto

Rio Tinto Group engages in exploring, mining, and processing mineral resources worldwide. The company operates through Iron Ore, Aluminium, Copper, and Minerals Segments. The Iron Ore segment engages in the iron ore mining, and salt and gypsum production in Western Australia. The Aluminum segment is involved in bauxite mining; alumina refining; and aluminium smelting. The Copper segment engages in mining and refining of copper, gold, silver, molybdenum, and other by-products and exploration activities. The Minerals segment is involved in mining and processing of borates, titanium dioxide feedstock, and iron concentrate and pellets; diamond mining, sorting, and marketing; and development projects for battery materials, such as lithium. It also owns and operates open pit and underground mines; and refineries, smelters, processing plants and power, and shipping facilities. Rio Tinto Group was founded in 1873 and is headquartered in London, the United Kingdom.

About MAC Copper

Metals Acquisition Limited focuses on mining and production of copper and silver. It operates the CSA copper mine in Cobar, Australia. The company was incorporated in 2022 and is headquartered in Saint Helier, Jersey.