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FCX's Q2 Earnings and Revenues Top Estimates on Higher Metal Prices
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Key Takeaways
FCX beat earnings and revenue estimates despite lower copper and gold sales volumes.
Freeport projects 2026 sales of 3.1B pounds of copper, 650,000 ounces of gold and 93M pounds of molybdenum.
FCX expects 2026 operating cash flow of about $8.3B and capital spending of around $4.3B.
Freeport-McMoRan Inc. (FCX - Free Report) 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
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.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
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 - Free Report) , Carpenter Technology Corporation (CRS - Free Report) and Ternium S.A. (TX - Free Report) .
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.
View the Zacks #1 Rank List
Image: Bigstock
FCX's Q2 Earnings and Revenues Top Estimates on Higher Metal Prices
Key Takeaways
Freeport-McMoRan Inc. (FCX - Free Report) 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.
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 - Free Report) , Carpenter Technology Corporation (CRS - Free Report) and Ternium S.A. (TX - Free Report) .
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.