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STOCK COMPARISON

Ecolab vs Freeport-McMoran Copper & Gold: Fair Value & Quality

Both stocks run through our valuation models. Here is how Ecolab (ECL) and Freeport-McMoran Copper & Gold (FCX) compare, as of Sep 4, 2026.

As of Sep 4, 2026, Fair Value Calculator sees Ecolab as the less overvalued of the two: Ecolab trades at $279 versus a fair value of $96.18 (-66%), while Freeport-McMoran Copper & Gold trades at $72.56 versus $22.81 (-69%).
Ecolab
ECL · USD · Materials
-66%
upside to fair value
overvalued
Price$279
Fair Value$96.18
Quality62/100
Freeport-McMoran Copper & Gold
FCX · USD · Materials
-69%
upside to fair value
overvalued
Price$72.56
Fair Value$22.81
Quality53/100
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Head-to-head numbers

Green value = the better side for that row (for valuation multiples: lower = cheaper).

EcolabFreeport-McMoran Copper & Gold
Valuation
37.2×P/E (TTM)31.5×
4.69×P/S (TTM)3.29×
7.90×P/B4.60×
20.8×EV/EBITDA9.6×
2.55×PEG3.87×
−65.5%Fair value upside−68.6%
1.0%Dividend yield0.8%
$2.76Dividend per share$0.60
Profitability
17%Operating margin31%
1.25×EBIT margin trend (5Y)1.79×
22%Return on equity16%
8%Return on assets8%
Growth
10%Revenue growth (YoY)9%
4.3%Avg. growth/yr (3Y)3.3%
6.4%Avg. growth/yr (5Y)13.2%
+9.8%Value creation/yr+6.6%
Balance & size
12.1×Interest coverage (EBIT/interest)17.0×
0.75×Debt / equity0.53×
$77BMarket cap$87B
healthyGrowth qualitymixed

Freeport-McMoran Copper & Gold leads: 6 to 9 metric wins.

Dash = not meaningfully computable, for example with negative equity.

Quality in detail

The quality score, broken down into the same factor families as on the stock page, 0 to 100 per family.

Ecolabof which business quality 59 · market factors 55 Freeport-McMoran Copper & Goldof which business quality 53 · market factors 64
ProfitabilityMargins and returns on capital today
57
35
Quality GrowthAre margins and returns improving?
34
31
CashflowEarnings quality: real cash, not paper profit
58
52
Fin. StrengthBalance sheet, leverage, solvency risk
56
65
InvestmentDisciplined investing over empire-building
66
53
Low VolatilityCalm price path (market factor)
77
26
MomentumPrice trend over the last 3–12 months (market factor)
46
69
52W MomentumDistance to the 52-week high (market factor)
47
99
Net IssuanceBuybacks instead of dilution
85
83

What the models say

How far the median fair value (base case) per model family sits from the current price, in percent. The amount in the currency of the trading venue is shown underneath.

above the price, more than 15% above close to the price, 85% to 115% of the price below the price, more than 15% below

Model familyEcolabPrice $279Freeport-McMoran Copper & GoldPrice $72.56
DCF Models-63%below the price$103-69%below the price$22.39
Earnings-Based-77%below the price$65.02-72%below the price$20.68
Dividend Discount-83%below the price$46.86-85%below the price$10.59
Multiples-63%below the price$104-64%below the price$26.06
Asset-Based-92%below the price$23.26-88%below the price$8.81
Growth DCF-68%below the price$88.52-77%below the price$16.95
Economic Profit-72%below the price$76.77-66%below the price$24.45
Growth Earnings-58%below the price$118-69%below the price$22.81
Minimum-92%below the price$23.26-88%below the price$8.81
Maximum-58%below the price$118-64%below the price$26.06
Median-70%below the price$82.64-70%below the price$21.53
Geometric mean-75%below the price$70.51-75%below the price$17.92

Minimum, maximum, median and geometric mean refer to the family values in this table. Geometric because deviations are ratios: half the price and twice the price average to 100%, not 125%.

Ecolab: 26 of 26 models see the stock below the current price.

Freeport-McMoran Copper & Gold: 25 of 25 models see the stock below the current price.

Scenario ranges

From our cautious bear case to the optimistic bull case. The white tick is the current price: left of fair value means room to run.

Ecolab
Bear $56.66Fair Value $96.18Bull $128
$279 = current price (white tick)
Freeport-McMoran Copper & Gold
Bear $11.69Fair Value $22.81Bull $32.58
$72.56 = current price (white tick)

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Ranked within their sector

Where each stock sits within its sector peer group. Band = middle 50% of peers, tick = median, dot = this stock.

Ecolab · Materials

Quality score62 · Top 25%
Fair value upside-66% · bottom 25%

Freeport-McMoran Copper & Gold · Materials

Quality score53 · above median
Fair value upside-69% · bottom 25%

Bottom line

As of Sep 4, 2026, Fair Value Calculator sees Ecolab as the less overvalued of the two: Ecolab trades at $279 versus a fair value of $96.18 (-66%), while Freeport-McMoran Copper & Gold trades at $72.56 versus $22.81 (-69%).

Ecolab has the higher quality score (62/100).

See the full analysis →
Ecolab · Freeport-McMoran Copper & Gold

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A model-based valuation snapshot from 26 models. Values change with price and fundamentals; the date shown above applies.