In this article, we discuss the 5 best copper stocks to buy now. If you want to read our detailed analysis of these stocks, go directly to the 10 Best Copper Stocks to Buy Now.
5. Hudbay Minerals Inc. (NYSE: HBM)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 15
Hudbay Minerals Inc. (NYSE: HBM) is ranked fifth on our list of 10 best copper stocks to buy now. The company’s shares have returned more than 116% to investors in the past year. It is a Canadian mining firm that focuses on producing copper and zinc. It operates in North and South America. The company has mined for precious metals in the Flin Flon area of Manitoba for over nine decades. The area has reserves of copper, zinc, gold, and silver.
On April 6, investment advisory Bank of American upgraded Hudbay Minerals Inc. (NYSE: HBM) stock to Buy from Underperform with a price target of $9.5 on the back of improved outlook for the copper business and an expected rise in prices of the metal.
Out of the hedge funds being tracked by Insider Monkey, Atlanta-based investment firm GMT Capital is a leading shareholder in Hudbay Minerals Inc. (NYSE: HBM) with 37 million shares worth more than $259 million.
4. Newmont Corporation (NYSE: NEM)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 43
Newmont Corporation (NYSE: NEM) is the largest gold mining company in the world. It also has interests in other metals, like copper and zinc. In addition to the United States, the firm operates in Canada, Mexico, Dominican Republic, Peru, Suriname, Argentina, Chile, Australia, and Ghana, among other countries. In 2020, the firm produced more than 56 million pounds of copper, a slight dip from the previous year as the COVID-19 hit. In 2019, copper production was close to 79 million pounds. It is placed fourth on our list of 10 best copper stocks to buy now.
On May 17, Newmont Corporation (NYSE: NEM) was one of the top performing stocks of the day as it gained close to 5% amid an overall bull run for the gold and mining industry at the stock market. Gold prices hit their year-to-date high in mid-May, before sliding in the weeks after.
At the end of the first quarter of 2021, 43 hedge funds in the database of Insider Monkey held stakes worth $994 million in Newmont Corporation (NYSE: NEM), down from 50 in the preceding quarter worth $1.2 billion.
In its Q1 2020 investor letter, First Eagle Investment Management, an asset management firm, highlighted a few stocks and Newmont Corporation (NYSE: NEM) was one of them. Here is what the fund said:
“The gold price helped support the stock price of Newmont Corporation, a Colorado-based miner with, in our view, highquality assets located in favorable mining jurisdictions in North America, South America, Australia and Africa. With what we consider an impressive portfolio of assets, strong management team, solid balance sheet and history of generating free cash flow, Newmont appears well positioned to withstand the economic disruptions related to the coronavirus pandemic.”
3. Rio Tinto Group (NYSE: RIO)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 25
Rio Tinto Group (NYSE: RIO) is the second largest metals and mining corporation in the world with interests in copper, aluminum, gold, silver, and other metals. It is ranked third on our list of 10 best copper stocks to buy now. The stock has returned more than 46% to investors in the past year. In 2020, the firm produced almost 527,900 metric tons of copper. The company also has significant mining operations related to uranium and iron.
On June 15, Rio Tinto Group (NYSE: RIO) announced that it would be partnering with an Australian firm to explore the usage of hydrogen instead of natural gas in metal refineries. The move is part of a plan by the company to reduce overall fossil fuel emissions.
Out of the hedge funds being tracked by Insider Monkey, Washington-based investment firm Fisher Asset Management is a leading shareholder in Rio Tinto Group (NYSE: RIO) with 12.5 million shares worth more than $971 million.
2. Freeport-McMoRan Inc. (NYSE: FCX)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 68
Freeport-McMoRan Inc. (NYSE: FCX) is an American mining company that explores and mines for copper, gold, silver, and other metals. The firm runs seven open-pit copper mines in North America, located in Morenci, Bagdad, Safford, Sierrita and Miami, Chino and Tyrone. It is placed second on our list of 10 best copper stocks to buy now. The stock has returned more than 233% to investors in the past twelve months.
On May 27, Freeport-McMoRan Inc. (NYSE: FCX) CEO Richard Adkerson told news publication Bloomberg that copper was a long-term and extraordinarily strong business that would benefit from substitution and increased recycling as large copper mines were rare to find.
At the end of the first quarter of 2021, 68 hedge funds in the database of Insider Monkey held stakes worth $3.2 billion in Freeport-McMoRan Inc. (NYSE: FCX), down from 71 in the preceding quarter worth $2.6 billion.
1. Southern Copper Corporation (NYSE: SCCO)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 27
Southern Copper Corporation (NYSE: SCCO) is a Mexico-based mining company that focuses on the production of copper. It is ranked first on our list of 10 best copper stocks to buy now. The company’s shares have offered investors returns exceeding 64% in the past twelve months. Copper products account for more than 80% of the total sales value at the firm. In 2019, the company mined 993,822 tons of copper.
Southern Copper Corporation (NYSE: SCCO) is a solid option for income investors. On May 7, the company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.70 per share, an increase of almost 17% compared to the previous dividend. The forward yield was 3.85%.
Out of the hedge funds being tracked by Insider Monkey, Washington-based investment firm Fisher Asset Management is a leading shareholder in Southern Copper Corporation (NYSE: SCCO) with 3.9 million shares worth more than $270 million.
You can also take a peek at Billionaire Stan Druckenmiller’s Top 10 Stock Picks and Billionaire Julian Robertson On Interest Rates and His Top Stock Picks For 2021.
