AU vs. FCX: AngloGold Ashanti vs. Freeport-McMoRan Stock Comparison

November 11, 2026

How do AngloGold Ashanti (AU) and Freeport-McMoRan (FCX) stack up? This page sets them side by side across company profile, performance and risk, profitability, growth, financial strength, dividends, and valuation, with selected fundamentals also measured against each stock's industry-group peers.

Company Profile

AngloGold Ashanti (AU) and Freeport-McMoRan (FCX) both belong to the Metals & Mining industry, though AU is classified under Gold while FCX falls under Copper.

Company profile comparison for AngloGold Ashanti (AU) and Freeport-McMoRan (FCX)
Profile Item	AU	FCX
Name	AngloGold Ashanti plc	Freeport-McMoRan Inc.
Country/Region	United States	United States
GICS Sector	Materials	Materials
GICS Industry Group	Materials	Materials
GICS Industry	Metals & Mining	Metals & Mining
GICS Sub-Industry	Gold	Copper
Market Capitalization	47.04 billion USD	85.33 billion USD
Currency	USD	USD
Exchange	NYSE	NYSE
Listing Date	August 5, 1998	July 10, 1995
Security Type	Common Stock	Common Stock

Price Performance

Cumulative Growth

FCX

GSPC

AngloGold Ashanti (AU) vs. Freeport-McMoRan (FCX), with S&P 500 (GSPC) for reference: Growth of a $10,000 investment over the past five years. Adjusted for dividends and splits.

Trailing Returns

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Trailing total returns for AngloGold Ashanti (AU) and Freeport-McMoRan (FCX). Returns over one year are annualized.

Calendar-Year Returns

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Calendar-year total returns for AngloGold Ashanti (AU) and Freeport-McMoRan (FCX). Each bar is that year's total return, measured year-end to year-end.

Performance Metrics

Price performance metrics for AngloGold Ashanti (AU) and Freeport-McMoRan (FCX)
Metric	AU	FCX
Total Return (1Y)	47.97%	58.58%
Total Return (3Y, Annualized)	87.34%	24.99%
Total Return (5Y, Annualized)	42.76%	11.32%

Risk Profile

Drawdown History

FCX

GSPC

AngloGold Ashanti (AU) vs. Freeport-McMoRan (FCX), with S&P 500 (GSPC) for reference: Drawdown from the running peak over the past five years. Each line shows the decline from its prior peak; 0% marks a new high.

Return Distribution

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Distribution of monthly total returns for AngloGold Ashanti (AU) and Freeport-McMoRan (FCX). Each bar is the share of months whose return fell in that 5% bucket.

Risk Metrics

Freeport-McMoRan (FCX) has an aggressive beta of 1.37, indicating higher sensitivity to broad-market moves, while AngloGold Ashanti (AU) is defensive at 0.67 and tends to be less market-sensitive — they sit on opposite ends of the beta spectrum.

Risk profile metrics for AngloGold Ashanti (AU) and Freeport-McMoRan (FCX)
Metric	AU	FCX
Volatility (1Y, Annualized)	60.11%	48.40%
Beta (5Y)	0.67	1.37
Max Drawdown (5Y)	-51.75%	-51.26%
Avg. Volume (3M)	2.54M	12.34M

Risk-Adjusted Performance

Risk-Return Positioning

AU and FCX are plotted by 1-year volatility (risk) and 1-year return. The dashed Capital Allocation Line runs from the risk-free rate through the shared industry median.

Risk-Adjusted Metrics

Risk-adjusted metrics for AngloGold Ashanti (AU) and Freeport-McMoRan (FCX)
Metric	AU	FCX
Sharpe Ratio (1Y)	0.73	1.12
Sortino Ratio (1Y)	1.07	1.61

Profitability

ROE (TTM)

AngloGold Ashanti (AU) at 44.33% sits in the top ROE quartile, while Freeport-McMoRan (FCX) at 15.72% is closer to the peer norm — stronger capital efficiency for AU.

AU

Materials industry group

44.33%

Max: 52.88%
AU: 44.33%
Q3: 19.49%
Median: 8.76%
Q1: -3.41%
Min: -32.81%

FCX

Materials industry group

15.72%

Max: 52.88%
Q3: 19.49%
FCX: 15.72%
Median: 8.76%
Q1: -3.41%
Min: -32.81%

AngloGold Ashanti (AU) vs. Freeport-McMoRan (FCX): A comparison of their ROE against the Materials industry group benchmark.

Net Margin (TTM)

AngloGold Ashanti (AU) at 32.64% retains a top-quartile share of revenue as profit, ahead of Freeport-McMoRan (FCX) at 13.03%, which keeps about the industry-typical share.

AU

Materials industry group

32.64%

Max: 38.66%
AU: 32.64%
Q3: 15.98%
Median: 5.28%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: -20.40%

FCX

Materials industry group

13.03%

Max: 38.66%
Q3: 15.98%
FCX: 13.03%
Median: 5.28%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: -20.40%

AngloGold Ashanti (AU) vs. Freeport-McMoRan (FCX): A comparison of their net margin against the Materials industry group benchmark.

Operating Margin (TTM)

Both AngloGold Ashanti (AU) at 45.36% and Freeport-McMoRan (FCX) at 35.26% convert sales into operating profit at a top-quartile rate, pointing to tighter cost discipline before financing and tax.

AU

Materials industry group

45.36%

Max: 66.70%
AU: 45.36%
Q3: 28.92%
Median: 12.56%
Q1: 3.28%
Min: -14.07%

FCX

Materials industry group

35.26%

Max: 66.70%
FCX: 35.26%
Q3: 28.92%
Median: 12.56%
Q1: 3.28%
Min: -14.07%

AngloGold Ashanti (AU) vs. Freeport-McMoRan (FCX): A comparison of their operating margin against the Materials industry group benchmark.

Profitability Metrics

Profitability metrics for AngloGold Ashanti (AU) and Freeport-McMoRan (FCX)
Metric	AU	FCX
ROE (TTM)	44.33%	15.72%
ROA (TTM)	24.39%	7.99%
Net Margin (TTM)	32.64%	13.03%
Operating Margin (TTM)	45.36%	35.26%
Gross Margin (TTM)	54.84%	38.86%

Growth

Revenue Growth

AngloGold Ashanti (AU) at 70.78% sits in the top revenue growth quartile, while Freeport-McMoRan (FCX) at 1.81% is closer to the peer norm — faster top-line expansion for AU.

AngloGold Ashanti (AU) vs. Freeport-McMoRan (FCX): A comparison of their Revenue Growth across different time periods.

EPS Growth

AngloGold Ashanti (AU) at 122.32% sits in the top EPS growth quartile, while Freeport-McMoRan (FCX) at 16.92% is closer to the peer norm — faster per-share earnings growth for AU.

AngloGold Ashanti (AU) vs. Freeport-McMoRan (FCX): A comparison of their EPS Growth across different time periods.

Growth Metrics

Growth metrics for AngloGold Ashanti (AU) and Freeport-McMoRan (FCX)
Metric	AU	FCX
Revenue Growth (YoY)	70.78%	1.81%
Revenue Growth (3Y CAGR)	30.02%	4.39%
EPS Growth (YoY)	122.32%	16.92%
EPS Growth (3Y CAGR)	93.95%	-14.00%

Financial Strength

Current Ratio (MRQ)

Both AngloGold Ashanti (AU) at 2.55 and Freeport-McMoRan (FCX) at 2.02 carry current ratio within their industries’ typical mid-ranges, suggesting balanced short-term liquidity relative to peers.

AU

Materials industry group

2.55

Max: 5.96
Q3: 3.30
AU: 2.55
Median: 2.24
Q1: 1.45
Min: 0.16

FCX

Materials industry group

2.02

Max: 5.96
Q3: 3.30
Median: 2.24
FCX: 2.02
Q1: 1.45
Min: 0.16

AngloGold Ashanti (AU) vs. Freeport-McMoRan (FCX): A comparison of their current ratio against the Materials industry group benchmark.

Debt / Equity (MRQ)

Both AngloGold Ashanti (AU) at 0.16 and Freeport-McMoRan (FCX) at 0.31 fund their balance sheets with roughly industry-typical debt-to-equity mixes.

AU

Materials industry group

0.16

Max: 1.98
Q3: 0.89
Median: 0.47
AU: 0.16
Q1: 0.13
Min: 0.00

FCX

Materials industry group

0.31

Max: 1.98
Q3: 0.89
Median: 0.47
FCX: 0.31
Q1: 0.13
Min: 0.00

AngloGold Ashanti (AU) vs. Freeport-McMoRan (FCX): A comparison of their debt-to-equity ratio against the Materials industry group benchmark.

Financial Strength Metrics

Financial strength metrics for AngloGold Ashanti (AU) and Freeport-McMoRan (FCX)
Metric	AU	FCX
Current Ratio (MRQ)	2.55	2.02
Debt / Equity (MRQ)	0.16	0.31
Net Debt / EBITDA	-0.17	0.60

Dividends

Dividend Yield (TTM)

Freeport-McMoRan (FCX) at 1.04% pays an industry-typical yield; AngloGold Ashanti (AU) at 4.88% is above its entire peer range — the higher number, but one that calls for a look at payout sustainability before treating it as an advantage.

AU

Materials industry group

4.88%

AU: 4.88%
Max: 4.52%
Q3: 1.85%
Median: 0.38%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

FCX

Materials industry group

1.04%

Max: 4.52%
Q3: 1.85%
FCX: 1.04%
Median: 0.38%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

AngloGold Ashanti (AU) vs. Freeport-McMoRan (FCX): A comparison of their dividend yield against the Materials industry group benchmark.

Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)

Freeport-McMoRan (FCX) at 25.21% pays out a band-typical share of earnings, while AngloGold Ashanti (AU) at 58.78% distributes more than its industry norm — less retained, thinner cover.

AU

Materials industry group

58.78%

Max: 83.62%
AU: 58.78%
Q3: 41.37%
Median: 9.54%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

FCX

Materials industry group

25.21%

Max: 83.62%
Q3: 41.37%
FCX: 25.21%
Median: 9.54%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

AngloGold Ashanti (AU) vs. Freeport-McMoRan (FCX): A comparison of their payout ratio against the Materials industry group benchmark.

Dividend Metrics

Dividend metrics for AngloGold Ashanti (AU) and Freeport-McMoRan (FCX)
Metric	AU	FCX
Dividend Yield (TTM)	4.88%	1.04%
Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)	58.78%	25.21%

Valuation

P/E Ratio (TTM)

Both AngloGold Ashanti (AU) at 12.09 and Freeport-McMoRan (FCX) at 24.97 land around their industries’ usual P/E ratio levels — neither is getting a clear earnings-multiple discount or premium versus peers.

AU

Materials industry group

12.09

Max: 59.00
Q3: 32.93
Median: 18.82
AU: 12.09
Q1: 11.96
Min: 3.93

FCX

Materials industry group

24.97

Max: 59.00
Q3: 32.93
FCX: 24.97
Median: 18.82
Q1: 11.96
Min: 3.93

AngloGold Ashanti (AU) vs. Freeport-McMoRan (FCX): A comparison of their P/E ratio against the Materials industry group benchmark.

P/S Ratio (TTM)

On P/S ratio, both AngloGold Ashanti (AU) at 3.91 and Freeport-McMoRan (FCX) at 3.23 are priced roughly in line with their industries — neither looks cheap nor rich on a sales basis.

AU

Materials industry group

3.91

Max: 9.62
Q3: 4.34
AU: 3.91
Median: 1.87
Q1: 0.73
Min: 0.00

FCX

Materials industry group

3.23

Max: 9.62
Q3: 4.34
FCX: 3.23
Median: 1.87
Q1: 0.73
Min: 0.00

AngloGold Ashanti (AU) vs. Freeport-McMoRan (FCX): A comparison of their P/S ratio against the Materials industry group benchmark.

P/B Ratio (MRQ)

Both AngloGold Ashanti (AU) at 5.01 and Freeport-McMoRan (FCX) at 3.97 carry a premium to book value versus peers, sitting in the upper P/B ratio quartile of their industries.

AU

Materials industry group

5.01

Max: 6.59
AU: 5.01
Q3: 3.55
Median: 2.08
Q1: 1.26
Min: -0.17

FCX

Materials industry group

3.97

Max: 6.59
FCX: 3.97
Q3: 3.55
Median: 2.08
Q1: 1.26
Min: -0.17

AngloGold Ashanti (AU) vs. Freeport-McMoRan (FCX): A comparison of their P/B ratio against the Materials industry group benchmark.

Valuation Metrics

Valuation metrics for AngloGold Ashanti (AU) and Freeport-McMoRan (FCX)
Metric	AU	FCX
P/E Ratio (TTM)	12.09	24.97
P/S Ratio (TTM)	3.91	3.23
P/B Ratio (MRQ)	5.01	3.97
Free Cash Flow Yield (TTM)	7.61%	2.19%