Does Freeport-McMoRan have an economic moat?
Maybe
Freeport-McMoRan earns 20.5% a year on the money invested in it: decent, but not the clear sign of a wide moat.
The numbers behind it
Return on invested capital, average of recent years20.5%
Return on invested capital, latest year18.6%
Gross margin28.2%Share of each sale left after production costs
Net margin8.5%
How we decide
A moat shows up in the numbers as high returns that last. We call it likely when the average return on invested capital over recent years is at least 15% and the gross margin at least 40%, and possible from 10%. The numbers can't show where a moat comes from (brand, network, patents), only that one seems to exist.
More questions about Freeport-McMoRan
Data as of Nov 13, 2026.