Freeport-McMoRan Inc. FCX recorded net income of $984 million or 68 cents per share for the second quarter of 2026, up from $772 million or 53 cents per share in the year-ago quarter. 

Barring one-time items, adjusted earnings per share were 74 cents, up around 37% year over year from 54 cents. The figure topped the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 62 cents. 

Revenues declined around 7.3% year over year to approximately $7.03 billion. The figure surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $6.47 billion. Lower copper and gold volumes were partly offset by significantly higher realized metal prices.

Freeport-McMoRan Inc. Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise

Freeport-McMoRan Inc. price-consensus-eps-surprise-chart | Freeport-McMoRan Inc. Quote

FCX’s Operational Highlights

Copper production fell around 18.4% year over year to 786 million pounds in the reported quarter. 

Consolidated copper sales declined approximately 30.1% year over year to 710 million pounds. The fall primarily resulted from lower operating rates at PTFI during the phased ramp-up of the Grasberg Block Cave underground mine.  

The company sold 123,000 ounces of gold in the quarter, down 76.4% year over year. Freeport also sold 25 million pounds of molybdenum, up 13.6% from the prior-year quarter.  

Consolidated average unit net cash costs per pound of copper were $1.97, up around 74.3% from $1.13 a year ago. The figure missed our estimate of $2.12 per pound. 

The average realized copper price was $6.17 per pound, up around 35.9% year over year. The figure exceeded our estimate of $6.05 per pound. The average realized gold price rose around 37.3% year over year to $4,520 per ounce. The figure marginally lagged our estimate of $4,536.26. The average realized molybdenum price was $28.75 per pound, up around 36.3% year over year. It surpassed our estimate of $27.73. 

Freeport’s Financial Position

Cash and cash equivalents at the end of the quarter were $4.1 billion, down around 9.1% year over year. Total debt was roughly $9.4 billion, up modestly from $9.25 billion at the end of the year-ago quarter. 

Cash flows provided by operating activities were $2 billion in the reported quarter, down around 6.7% year over year. Capital expenditures totaled $1.1 billion compared with $1.26 billion in the prior-year quarter.  

FCX’s Guidance

For full-year 2026, consolidated sales volumes are expected to 3.1 billion pounds of copper, 650,000 ounces of gold and 93 million pounds of molybdenum. 

This includes projected third-quarter sales of 750 million pounds of copper, 160,000 ounces of gold and 22 million pounds of molybdenum. 

Consolidated average unit net cash costs are expected to average $1.90 per pound of copper for 2026, including $2 per pound in the third quarter. Freeport also projects full-year operating cash flows of $8.3 billion and capital expenditures of around $4.3 billion. 

FCX’s Price Performance

Shares of Freeport have gained 45.8% over the past year compared with a 58.2% rise in its industry. 

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FCX’s Zacks Rank & Key Picks

FCX currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).

Some better-ranked stocks in the Basic Materials space are CSW Industrials, Inc. CSW, Carpenter Technology Corporation CRS and Ternium S.A. TX.  

CSW Industrials is expected to report second-quarter results on July 30. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for CSW’s second-quarter earnings is pegged at $3.66 per share. It carries a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) at present. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

CRS is slated to report second-quarter results on July 30. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for earnings is pegged at $3.03 per share. CRS has a Zacks Rank #1 at present.

Ternium is scheduled to report second-quarter results on Aug. 4. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for TX’s second-quarter earnings is pegged at $1.06 per share. It currently carries a Zacks Rank #1.

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