Head to Head Contrast: Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE:FCX) versus Coeur Mining (NYSE:CDE)

Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE:FCX) and Coeur Mining (NYSE:CDE) are both large-cap basic materials companies, but which is the superior investment? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their profitability, dividends, institutional ownership, earnings, analyst recommendations, valuation and risk.

Volatility and Risk

Freeport-McMoRan has a beta of 1.58, indicating that its share price is 58% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Coeur Mining has a beta of 1.23, indicating that its share price is 23% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Freeport-McMoRan and Coeur Mining”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Freeport-McMoRan	$25.46 billion	2.28	$1.89 billion	$1.32	30.57
Coeur Mining	$1.05 billion	11.81	$58.90 million	$0.37	52.32

Freeport-McMoRan has higher revenue and earnings than Coeur Mining. Freeport-McMoRan is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Coeur Mining, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Profitability

This table compares Freeport-McMoRan and Coeur Mining’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Freeport-McMoRan	7.45%	7.37%	3.87%
Coeur Mining	13.06%	14.38%	8.78%

Insider & Institutional Ownership

80.8% of Freeport-McMoRan shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 63.0% of Coeur Mining shares are held by institutional investors. 0.8% of Freeport-McMoRan shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 1.6% of Coeur Mining shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of current ratings and price targets for Freeport-McMoRan and Coeur Mining, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Freeport-McMoRan	0	9	12	2	2.70
Coeur Mining	0	2	6	3	3.09

Freeport-McMoRan currently has a consensus price target of $46.74, suggesting a potential upside of 15.84%. Coeur Mining has a consensus price target of $10.79, suggesting a potential downside of 44.29%. Given Freeport-McMoRan’s higher possible upside, research analysts plainly believe Freeport-McMoRan is more favorable than Coeur Mining.

Summary

Coeur Mining beats Freeport-McMoRan on 8 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Freeport-McMoRan

Freeport-McMoRan Inc. engages in the mining of mineral properties in North America, South America, and Indonesia. It primarily explores for copper, gold, molybdenum, silver, and other metals. The company's assets include the Grasberg minerals district in Indonesia; Morenci, Bagdad, Safford, Sierrita, and Miami in Arizona; Chino and Tyrone in New Mexico; and Henderson and Climax in Colorado, North America, as well as Cerro Verde in Peru and El Abra in Chile. The company was formerly known as Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold Inc. and changed its name to Freeport-McMoRan Inc. in July 2014. Freeport-McMoRan Inc. was incorporated in 1987 and is headquartered in Phoenix, Arizona.

About Coeur Mining

Coeur Mining, Inc. explores for precious metals in the United States, Canada, and Mexico. The company primarily explores for gold, silver, zinc, and lead properties. It markets and sells its concentrates to third-party customers, smelters, under off-take agreements. The company was formerly known as Coeur d'Alene Mines Corporation and changed its name to Coeur Mining, Inc. in May 2013. Coeur Mining, Inc. was incorporated in 1928 and is headquartered in Chicago, Illinois.