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How to buy Rio Tinto shares
Own Rio Tinto shares in just a few minutes.
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Rio Tinto Group is an other industrial metals & mining business based in Australia. Rio Tinto shares (RIO) are listed on the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX) and all prices are listed in Australian Dollars. Rio Tinto has a trailing 12-month revenue of around $41.8 billion.
How to buy shares in Rio Tinto
- Compare share trading platforms. To buy shares listed in Australia, you'll need to sign up to a broker with access to the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX). Our table below can help you choose.
- Open and fund your brokerage account. Complete an application with your personal and financial details, like your ID and tax file number. Fund your account with a bank transfer, PayPal or debit card.
- Search for Rio Tinto. Find the share by name or ticker symbol: RIO. Research its history to confirm it's a solid investment against your financial goals.
- Purchase now or later. Buy today with a market order or use a limit order to delay your purchase until Rio Tinto reaches your desired price. To spread out your risk, look into dollar-cost averaging, which smooths out buying at consistent intervals and amounts.
- Decide on how many to buy. At today's price of $96.22, weigh your budget against a diversified portfolio that can minimise risk through the market's ups and downs.
- Check in on your investment. Congratulations, you own a part of Rio Tinto. Optimise your portfolio by tracking how your stock — and even the business — performs with an eye on the long term. You may be eligible for dividends and shareholder voting rights on directors and management that can affect your stock.
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For our Top Picks, we compared our Finder partners using a proprietary algorithm in August 2020. Keep in mind that our top picks may not always be the best for you, and you're encouraged to compare for yourself to find one that works for you. Read our full methodology here to find out more.What's in this guide?
- Rio Tinto key stats
- Compare share trading platforms
- Is Rio Tinto stock a buy or sell?
- Rio Tinto performance over time
- Is Rio Tinto suitable for ethical investing?
- Are Rio Tinto shares over-valued?
- Rio Tinto's financials
- How volatile are Rio Tinto shares?
- Does Rio Tinto pay a dividend?
- Have Rio Tinto shares ever split?
- Other common questions
How has coronavirus impacted Rio Tinto's share price?
Since the stock market crash in March caused by coronavirus, Rio Tinto's share price has had significant negative movement.
Its last market close was $96.22, which is 1.50% down on its pre-crash value of $97.69 and 32.22% up on the lowest point reached during the March crash when the shares fell as low as $72.77.
If you had bought $1,000 worth of Rio Tinto shares at the start of February 2020, those shares would have been worth $812.29 at the bottom of the March crash, and if you held on to them, then as of the last market close they'd be worth $992.99.
Rio Tinto share price
Use our graph to track the performance of RIO stocks over time.Rio Tinto shares at a glance
Information last updated 2021-01-14.
| 52-week range | $71.2552 - $127 |
|---|---|
| 50-day moving average | $114.2347 |
| 200-day moving average | $102.454 |
| Target price | $60.42 |
| PE ratio | 27.1523 |
| Dividend yield | $5.66 (4.73%) |
| Earnings per share (TTM) | $4.407 |
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The value of your investments can fall as well as rise and you may get back less than you invested. Past performance is no indication of future results.
Is it a good time to buy Rio Tinto stock?
The technical analysis gauge below displays real-time ratings for the timeframes you select. This is not a recommendation, however. It represents a technical analysis based on the most popular technical indicators: Moving Averages, Oscillators and Pivots. Finder might not concur and takes no responsibility.
Rio Tinto price performance over time
Historical closes compared with the close of A$96.22 on 2020-10-22
| 1 week (2021-01-08) | -22.41% |
|---|---|
| 1 month (2020-12-16) | -15.87% |
| 3 months (2020-10-16) | 0.81% |
| 6 months (2020-07-16) | -7.04% |
| 1 year (2020-01-16) | -6.94% |
|---|---|
| 2 years (2019-01-16) | 20.82% |
| 3 years (2018-01-16) | 18.41% |
| 5 years (2016-01-15) | 143.53% |
Is Rio Tinto under- or over-valued?
Valuing Rio Tinto stock is incredibly difficult, and any metric has to be viewed as part of a bigger picture of Rio Tinto's overall performance. However, analysts commonly use some key metrics to help gauge the value of a stock.
Rio Tinto's P/E ratio
Rio Tinto's current share price divided by its per-share earnings (EPS) over a 12-month period gives a "trailing price/earnings ratio" of roughly 27x. In other words, Rio Tinto shares trade at around 27x recent earnings.
That's relatively low compared to, say, the P/E ratio for the ASX over the 12 months to December 2019 (32.14). The low P/E ratio could mean that investors are pessimistic about the outlook for the shares or simply that they're under-valued.
Rio Tinto's EBITDA
Rio Tinto's EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation) is $17.9 billion (£10.2 billion).
The EBITDA is a measure of a Rio Tinto's overall financial performance and is widely used to measure a its profitability.
Rio Tinto financials
| Revenue TTM | $41.8 billion |
|---|---|
| Operating margin TTM | 30.08% |
| Gross profit TTM | $16.2 billion |
| Return on assets TTM | 9.18% |
| Return on equity TTM | 17.04% |
| Profit margin | 17.21% |
| Book value | 24.253 |
| Market capitalisation | $193.6 billion |
TTM: trailing 12 months
Rio Tinto's environmental, social and governance track record
Environmental, social and governance (known as ESG) criteria are a set of three factors used to measure the sustainability and social impact of companies like Rio Tinto.
When it comes to ESG scores, lower is better, and lower scores are generally associated with lower risk for would-be investors.
Rio Tinto's total ESG risk score
Total ESG risk: 32.79
Socially conscious investors use ESG scores to screen how an investment aligns with their worldview, and Rio Tinto's overall score of 32.79 (as at 01/01/2019) is pretty weak – landing it in it in the 67th percentile of companies rated in the same sector.
ESG scores are increasingly used to estimate the level of risk a company like Rio Tinto is exposed to within the areas of "environmental" (carbon footprint, resource use etc.), "social" (health and safety, human rights etc.), and "governance" (anti-corruption, tax transparency etc.).
Rio Tinto's environmental score
Environmental score: 13.49/100
Rio Tinto's environmental score of 13.49 puts it squarely in the 5th percentile of companies rated in the same sector. This could suggest that Rio Tinto is a leader in its sector terms of its environmental impact, and exposed to a lower level of risk.
Rio Tinto's social score
Social score: 13.38/100
Rio Tinto's social score of 13.38 puts it squarely in the 5th percentile of companies rated in the same sector. This could suggest that Rio Tinto is a leader in its sector when it comes to taking good care of its workforce and the communities it impacts.
Rio Tinto's governance score
Governance score: 10.92/100
Rio Tinto's governance score puts it squarely in the 5th percentile of companies rated in the same sector. That could suggest that Rio Tinto is a leader in its sector when it comes to responsible management and strategy, and exposed to a lower level of risk.
Rio Tinto's controversy score
Controversy score: 4/5
ESG scores also evaluate any incidences of controversy that a company has been involved in. Rio Tinto scored a 4 out of 5 for controversy – the second-lowest score possible, reflecting that Rio Tinto has a damaged public profile.
Environmental, social, and governance (ESG) summary
Rio Tinto Group was last rated for ESG on: 2019-01-01.
| Total ESG score | 32.79 |
|---|---|
| Total ESG percentile | 67.48 |
| Environmental score | 13.49 |
| Environmental score percentile | 5 |
| Social score | 13.38 |
| Social score percentile | 5 |
| Governance score | 10.92 |
| Governance score percentile | 5 |
| Level of controversy | 4 |
Rio Tinto share dividends
Dividend payout ratio: 85% of net profits
Recently Rio Tinto has paid out, on average, around 85% of net profits as dividends. That has enabled analysts to estimate a "forward annual dividend yield" of 4.73% of the current stock value. This means that over a year, based on recent payouts (which are sadly no guarantee of future payouts), Rio Tinto shareholders could enjoy a 4.73% return on their shares, in the form of dividend payments. In Rio Tinto's case, that would currently equate to about A$5.66 per share.
Rio Tinto's payout ratio would broadly be considered high, and as such this stock could appeal to those looking to generate an income. Bear in mind however that companies should normally also look to re-invest a decent amount of net profits to ensure future growth.
The latest dividend was paid out to all shareholders who bought their shares by 6 August 2020 (the "ex-dividend date").
Have Rio Tinto's shares ever split?
Rio Tinto's shares were split on 17 June 2009.
Rio Tinto share price volatility
Over the last 12 months, Rio Tinto's shares have ranged in value from as little as $71.2552 up to $127. A popular way to gauge a stock's volatility is its "beta".
Beta is a measure of a share's volatility in relation to the market. The market (AU average) beta is 1, while Rio Tinto's is 0.6359. This would suggest that Rio Tinto's shares are less volatile than average (for this exchange).
Rio Tinto overview
Rio Tinto Group engages in finding, mining, and processing mineral resources worldwide. The company offers aluminum, silver, molybdenum, copper, diamonds, gold, borates, titanium dioxide, salt, iron ore, and uranium. It is also involved in the alumina production; primary aluminum smelting; bauxite mining; alumina refining; and ilmenite, rutile, and zircon mining, as well as provision of gypsum. Rio Tinto Group was founded in 1873 and is headquartered in London, the United Kingdom.
Frequently asked questions
Disclaimer: This information should not be interpreted as an endorsement of futures, stocks, ETFs, CFDs, options or any specific provider, service or offering. It should not be relied upon as investment advice or construed as providing recommendations of any kind. Futures, stocks, ETFs and options trading involves substantial risk of loss and therefore are not appropriate for all investors. Trading CFDs comes with a higher risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. Past performance is not an indication of future results. Consider your own circumstances, and obtain your own advice, before making any trades.
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