Comparing Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE:FCX) & Santacruz Silver Mining (NASDAQ:SCZM)

Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE:FCX) and Santacruz Silver Mining (NASDAQ:SCZM) are both materials companies, but which is the superior business? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their earnings, analyst recommendations, dividends, valuation, risk, profitability and institutional ownership.

Profitability

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

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Freeport-McMoRan	11.39%	10.63%	5.69%
Santacruz Silver Mining	9.97%	21.55%	9.49%

Insider and Institutional Ownership

80.8% of Freeport-McMoRan shares are owned by institutional investors. 0.7% of Freeport-McMoRan shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Analyst Ratings

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

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Freeport-McMoRan	0	4	20	1	2.88
Santacruz Silver Mining	0	2	1	0	2.33

Freeport-McMoRan presently has a consensus price target of $70.29, suggesting a potential upside of 1.55%. Santacruz Silver Mining has a consensus price target of $10.00, suggesting a potential upside of 20.34%. Given Santacruz Silver Mining’s higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Santacruz Silver Mining is more favorable than Freeport-McMoRan.

Valuation and Earnings

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

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Freeport-McMoRan	$25.91 billion	3.84	$2.20 billion	$2.03	34.10
Santacruz Silver Mining	$326.38 million	2.37	$42.22 million	$0.32	25.97

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

Summary

Freeport-McMoRan beats Santacruz Silver Mining on 11 of the 14 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 Santacruz Silver Mining

Santacruz Silver Mining Ltd., together with its subsidiaries, engages in the acquisition, exploration, development, and operation of mineral properties in Mexico. The company primarily explores for silver, as well as for gold, zinc, lead, and copper deposits. It primarily holds a 100% interest in the Rosario project located in the municipality of Charcas in the state of San Luis Potosi; and Veta Grande project that include three concession groups, which consists of 184 mining concessions covering an area of 8,944 hectares in the Zacatecas Mining District, Mexico. The company was formerly known as Forte Resources Inc. and changed its name to Santacruz Silver Mining Ltd. in April 2012. Santacruz Silver Mining Ltd. Was incorporated in 2011 and is based in Vancouver, Canada.