GFI vs. RIO: Gold Fields vs. Rio Tinto Stock Comparison

November 11, 2026

How do Gold Fields (GFI) and Rio Tinto (RIO) 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

Gold Fields (GFI) and Rio Tinto (RIO) both belong to the Metals & Mining industry, though GFI is classified under Gold while RIO falls under Diversified Metals & Mining.

Both Gold Fields (GFI) and Rio Tinto (RIO) trade as ADRs — their core financials are comparable, but keep FX, depositary-program fees, and dividend withholding in view for each.

Company profile comparison for Gold Fields (GFI) and Rio Tinto (RIO)
Profile Item	GFI	RIO
Name	Gold Fields Ltd. Sponsored ADR	Rio Tinto plc ADR
Country/Region	South Africa	United Kingdom
GICS Sector	Materials	Materials
GICS Industry Group	Materials	Materials
GICS Industry	Metals & Mining	Metals & Mining
GICS Sub-Industry	Gold	Diversified Metals & Mining
Market Capitalization	34.65 billion USD	136.19 billion USD
Currency	USD	USD
Exchange	NYSE	NYSE
Listing Date	March 17, 1980	June 28, 1990
Security Type	ADR	ADR

Price Performance

Cumulative Growth

GFI

RIO

GSPC

Gold Fields (GFI) vs. Rio Tinto (RIO), 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 Gold Fields (GFI) and Rio Tinto (RIO). Returns over one year are annualized.

Calendar-Year Returns

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Calendar-year total returns for Gold Fields (GFI) and Rio Tinto (RIO). Each bar is that year's total return, measured year-end to year-end.

Performance Metrics

Price performance metrics for Gold Fields (GFI) and Rio Tinto (RIO)
Metric	GFI	RIO
Total Return (1Y)	9.54%	30.54%
Total Return (3Y, Annualized)	51.07%	16.90%
Total Return (5Y, Annualized)	38.08%	14.68%

Risk Profile

Drawdown History

GFI

RIO

GSPC

Gold Fields (GFI) vs. Rio Tinto (RIO), 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 Gold Fields (GFI) and Rio Tinto (RIO). Each bar is the share of months whose return fell in that 5% bucket.

Risk Metrics

Risk profile metrics for Gold Fields (GFI) and Rio Tinto (RIO)
Metric	GFI	RIO
Volatility (1Y, Annualized)	60.41%	30.72%
Beta (5Y)	0.64	0.63
Max Drawdown (5Y)	-56.22%	-35.25%
Avg. Volume (3M)	3.78M	2.35M

Risk-Adjusted Performance

Risk-Return Positioning

GFI and RIO 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 Gold Fields (GFI) and Rio Tinto (RIO)
Metric	GFI	RIO
Sharpe Ratio (1Y)	0.09	0.85
Sortino Ratio (1Y)	0.12	1.26

Profitability

ROE (TTM)

Gold Fields (GFI) at 58.68% clears its industry range for ROE, a sharper capital-efficiency signal than Rio Tinto (RIO) at 19.31%, which is closer to a typical peer reading.

GFI

Materials industry group

58.68%

GFI: 58.68%
Max: 52.88%
Q3: 19.49%
Median: 8.76%
Q1: -3.41%
Min: -32.81%

RIO

Materials industry group

19.31%

Max: 52.88%
Q3: 19.49%
RIO: 19.31%
Median: 8.76%
Q1: -3.41%
Min: -32.81%

Gold Fields (GFI) vs. Rio Tinto (RIO): A comparison of their ROE against the Materials industry group benchmark.

Net Margin (TTM)

For every dollar of sales, both Gold Fields (GFI) at 38.66% and Rio Tinto (RIO) at 19.59% retain more as net profit than most peers, landing in the top net margin quartile of their industries.

GFI

Materials industry group

38.66%

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

RIO

Materials industry group

19.59%

Max: 38.66%
RIO: 19.59%
Q3: 15.98%
Median: 5.28%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: -20.40%

Gold Fields (GFI) vs. Rio Tinto (RIO): A comparison of their net margin against the Materials industry group benchmark.

Operating Margin (TTM)

Gold Fields (GFI) at 55.00% operates in the top operating margin quartile, ahead of Rio Tinto (RIO) at 28.05%, which runs around its industry’s norm.

GFI

Materials industry group

55.00%

Max: 66.70%
GFI: 55.00%
Q3: 28.92%
Median: 12.56%
Q1: 3.28%
Min: -14.07%

RIO

Materials industry group

28.05%

Max: 66.70%
Q3: 28.92%
RIO: 28.05%
Median: 12.56%
Q1: 3.28%
Min: -14.07%

Gold Fields (GFI) vs. Rio Tinto (RIO): A comparison of their operating margin against the Materials industry group benchmark.

Profitability Metrics

Profitability metrics for Gold Fields (GFI) and Rio Tinto (RIO)
Metric	GFI	RIO
ROE (TTM)	58.68%	19.31%
ROA (TTM)	28.52%	8.11%
Net Margin (TTM)	38.66%	19.59%
Operating Margin (TTM)	55.00%	28.05%
Gross Margin (TTM)	57.77%	29.75%

Growth

Revenue Growth

Gold Fields (GFI) at 68.24% sits in the top revenue growth quartile, while Rio Tinto (RIO) at 7.42% is closer to the peer norm — faster top-line expansion for GFI.

Gold Fields (GFI) vs. Rio Tinto (RIO): A comparison of their Revenue Growth across different time periods.

EPS Growth

Gold Fields (GFI) at 185.51% sits in the top EPS growth quartile, while Rio Tinto (RIO) at -13.97% is closer to the peer norm — faster per-share earnings growth for GFI.

Gold Fields (GFI) vs. Rio Tinto (RIO): A comparison of their EPS Growth across different time periods.

Growth Metrics

Growth metrics for Gold Fields (GFI) and Rio Tinto (RIO)
Metric	GFI	RIO
Revenue Growth (YoY)	68.24%	7.42%
Revenue Growth (3Y CAGR)	26.86%	1.24%
EPS Growth (YoY)	185.51%	-13.97%
EPS Growth (3Y CAGR)	71.58%	-7.23%

Financial Strength

Current Ratio (MRQ)

Gold Fields (GFI) at 1.87 keeps current ratio within its industry’s typical mid-range, while Rio Tinto (RIO) at 1.42 runs in the tighter-liquidity quartile — a thinner cushion against current liabilities for RIO.

GFI

Materials industry group

1.87

Max: 5.96
Q3: 3.30
Median: 2.24
GFI: 1.87
Q1: 1.45
Min: 0.16

RIO

Materials industry group

1.42

Max: 5.96
Q3: 3.30
Median: 2.24
Q1: 1.45
RIO: 1.42
Min: 0.16

Gold Fields (GFI) vs. Rio Tinto (RIO): A comparison of their current ratio against the Materials industry group benchmark.

Debt / Equity (MRQ)

Both Gold Fields (GFI) at 0.29 and Rio Tinto (RIO) at 0.32 fund their balance sheets with roughly industry-typical debt-to-equity mixes.

GFI

Materials industry group

0.29

Max: 1.98
Q3: 0.89
Median: 0.47
GFI: 0.29
Q1: 0.13
Min: 0.00

RIO

Materials industry group

0.32

Max: 1.98
Q3: 0.89
Median: 0.47
RIO: 0.32
Q1: 0.13
Min: 0.00

Gold Fields (GFI) vs. Rio Tinto (RIO): A comparison of their debt-to-equity ratio against the Materials industry group benchmark.

Financial Strength Metrics

Financial strength metrics for Gold Fields (GFI) and Rio Tinto (RIO)
Metric	GFI	RIO
Current Ratio (MRQ)	1.87	1.42
Debt / Equity (MRQ)	0.29	0.32
Net Debt / EBITDA	0.06	0.58

Dividends

Dividend Yield (TTM)

Both Gold Fields (GFI) at 5.65% and Rio Tinto (RIO) at 5.59% yield above their industries’ entire benchmark ranges — high enough that dividend safety, not income, becomes the first question.

GFI

Materials industry group

5.65%

GFI: 5.65%
Max: 4.52%
Q3: 1.85%
Median: 0.38%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

RIO

Materials industry group

5.59%

RIO: 5.59%
Max: 4.52%
Q3: 1.85%
Median: 0.38%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

Gold Fields (GFI) vs. Rio Tinto (RIO): A comparison of their dividend yield against the Materials industry group benchmark.

Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)

Gold Fields (GFI) at 31.81% pays out a band-typical share of earnings, while Rio Tinto (RIO) at 54.46% distributes more than its industry norm — less retained, thinner cover.

GFI

Materials industry group

31.81%

Max: 83.62%
Q3: 41.37%
GFI: 31.81%
Median: 9.54%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

RIO

Materials industry group

54.46%

Max: 83.62%
RIO: 54.46%
Q3: 41.37%
Median: 9.54%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

Gold Fields (GFI) vs. Rio Tinto (RIO): A comparison of their payout ratio against the Materials industry group benchmark.

Dividend Metrics

Dividend metrics for Gold Fields (GFI) and Rio Tinto (RIO)
Metric	GFI	RIO
Dividend Yield (TTM)	5.65%	5.59%
Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)	31.81%	54.46%

Valuation

P/E Ratio (TTM)

Both Gold Fields (GFI) at 8.03 and Rio Tinto (RIO) at 11.35 sit in the cheaper earnings-multiple quartile for P/E ratio, with the market paying less for a dollar of trailing earnings than it pays for typical peers.

GFI

Materials industry group

8.03

Max: 59.00
Q3: 32.93
Median: 18.82
Q1: 11.96
GFI: 8.03
Min: 3.93

RIO

Materials industry group

11.35

Max: 59.00
Q3: 32.93
Median: 18.82
Q1: 11.96
RIO: 11.35
Min: 3.93

Gold Fields (GFI) vs. Rio Tinto (RIO): A comparison of their P/E ratio against the Materials industry group benchmark.

P/S Ratio (TTM)

On P/S ratio, both Gold Fields (GFI) at 3.05 and Rio Tinto (RIO) at 2.20 are priced roughly in line with their industries — neither looks cheap nor rich on a sales basis.

GFI

Materials industry group

3.05

Max: 9.62
Q3: 4.34
GFI: 3.05
Median: 1.87
Q1: 0.73
Min: 0.00

RIO

Materials industry group

2.20

Max: 9.62
Q3: 4.34
RIO: 2.20
Median: 1.87
Q1: 0.73
Min: 0.00

Gold Fields (GFI) vs. Rio Tinto (RIO): A comparison of their P/S ratio against the Materials industry group benchmark.

P/B Ratio (MRQ)

Rio Tinto (RIO) at 2.08 sits near its industry’s typical P/B ratio, while Gold Fields (GFI) at 7.78 prices above its benchmark range — GFI looks rich relative to book.

GFI

Materials industry group

7.78

GFI: 7.78
Max: 6.59
Q3: 3.55
Median: 2.08
Q1: 1.26
Min: -0.17

RIO

Materials industry group

2.08

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

Gold Fields (GFI) vs. Rio Tinto (RIO): A comparison of their P/B ratio against the Materials industry group benchmark.

Valuation Metrics

Valuation metrics for Gold Fields (GFI) and Rio Tinto (RIO)
Metric	GFI	RIO
P/E Ratio (TTM)	8.03	11.35
P/S Ratio (TTM)	3.05	2.20
P/B Ratio (MRQ)	7.78	2.08
Free Cash Flow Yield (TTM)	12.05%	2.64%