RIO vs CLF vs LBSR Stock Comparison

Rio Tinto, Cleveland-Cliffs and Liberty Star Uranium & Metals Prices as of Oct 27, 2026 Peers: Industry group
RIO Rio Tinto Plc
$85.74 -9.3% 1M +20.9% 1Y
Market cap
$139.16B
P/E
–
Revenue (TTM)
—
Div. yield
5.42%
Iron Ore Basic Materials
4 wins
CLF Cleveland-Cliffs Inc.
$13.90 +14.0% 1M +0.9% 1Y
Market cap
$7.93B
P/E
–
Revenue (TTM)
$20.07B
Div. yield
–
Steel Basic Materials
1 win

Head to Head

6 decided of 12

Rio Tinto leads on 4 of the 12 questions below (Rio Tinto 4, Liberty Star Uranium & Metals 1, Cleveland-Cliffs 1). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionRIOCLFLBSRLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $139.16B $7.93B $2.34M RIO
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only — -16.8x -2.0x –
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 10.9x — — –
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months — +7.8% — –
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months — -2.4% — –
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital — -1.3% — –
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA — 9.8x -0.9x LBSR
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 5.42% 0.00% — –
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months +20.9% +0.9% -75.0% RIO
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years +5.9%/yr -10.7%/yr -48.7%/yr RIO
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 30.7% 67.3% 225.4% RIO
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers — 38/100 8/100 CLF

Percentile Scorecard

RIOCLFLBSR

Each axis is the mean percentile of its metrics against the company's industry group. 100 is the best in the group, 50 the middle.

Scores by Axis

AxisRIOCLFLBSR
Valuation – 65 #57 of 162 1 #160 of 162
Growth – 40 #89 of 147 19 #120 of 147
Profitability – 37 #77 of 122 –
Financial Health 22 #128 of 164 11 #146 of 164 4 #157 of 164
Shareholder Returns 98 #3 of 107 – 7 #100 of 107
Overall – 38 8
  • RIO ranked among 176 companies in Metals and Mining
  • CLF ranked among 176 companies in Metals and Mining
  • LBSR ranked among 176 companies in Metals and Mining

Price Performance

Price return, split-adjusted, before dividends. Click a name to hide or show it.

Returns

PeriodRIOCLFLBSRSPY
1 month -9.3%+14.0%0.0% -0.2%
3 months -6.4%+16.1%0.0% +3.9%
6 months -12.9%+36.0%0.0% +8.2%
Year to date +7.1%+4.7%-60.0% +12.9%
1 year +20.9%+0.9%-75.0% +12.3%
3 years +34.5%-13.3%-50.0% +87.4%
3 years, per year +10.4%-4.7%-20.6% +23.3%
5 years +32.9%-43.1%-96.4% +67.9%
5 years, per year +5.9%-10.7%-48.7% +10.9%
10 years +150.4%+174.2%-98.1% +261.1%
10 years, per year +9.6%+10.6%-32.7% +13.7%

Risk

MeasureRIOCLFLBSRSPY
Volatility, 1Y 30.7%67.3%225.4% 12.7%
Downside volatility, 1Y 32.1%71.3%495.0% 12.7%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 1.282.121.74 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y 0.680.01-0.33 0.97
Max drawdown, 5Y -39.0%-82.4%-98.8% -25.4%
From 52-week high -23.5%-7.9%-75.0% -1.2%
52-week high $112.04$15.09$0.08 $779.14
52-week low $67.89$7.82$0.01 $631.97

Valuation History

Weekly multiples on trailing twelve-month fundamentals. Negative or extreme readings (a loss year, a collapsed denominator) are left out so the chart stays readable.

MultipleRIOCLFLBSR
P/E now vs peer median —median 13.3x -16.8xmedian 13.3x -2.0xmedian 13.3x
P/S now vs peer median —median 3.2x 0.4xmedian 3.2x —median 3.2x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median —median 7.3x 20.1xmedian 7.3x -6.1xmedian 7.3x
P/FCF now vs peer median —median 14.7x -16.4xmedian 14.7x -2.8xmedian 14.7x
P/B now vs peer median 2.1xmedian 2.2x 1.3xmedian 2.2x -4.4xmedian 2.2x
PEG now vs peer median —median 0.31 0.35median 0.31 -0.09median 0.31

Financial History

Reported figures by fiscal period, placed on the calendar year (or quarter) each period ended in, so companies with different fiscal years line up.

Trailing twelve monthsRIOCLFLBSR
Revenue – $20.07B –
Gross profit – $309.00M –
Operating income – -$282.00M -$1.09M
Net income – -$460.00M -$1.09M
Free cash flow – -$485.00M -$844.33K
R&D – – $174.76K
EPS (diluted) – $-0.82 $-0.01
Cash & equivalents $8.87B $77.00M $42.27K
Total debt $16.90B $7.65B $1.98M
Shares (diluted) 1.63B 574.00M 111.24M
Enterprise value $99.67B $7.96B $1.52M

All Metrics

58 metrics · best in bold

Bold marks the best reading: the lowest positive value for multiples, leverage and payout, the highest for everything else. The bar under each value is its percentile against that company's own peers. Hover a value for its rank and the peer median.

Valuation

12 metrics
MetricRIOCLFLBSR
P/E – -16.8x -2.0x
P/FCF – -16.4x -2.8x
P/Operating cash flow – 68.4x -2.8x
P/S – 0.4x –
P/B 2.1x 1.3x -4.4x
P/Tangible book 2.3x 1.6x -4.4x
EV/EBITDA – 20.1x -6.1x
EV/EBIT – -55.0x -2.5x
EV/Revenue – 0.8x –
EV/FCF – -32.0x -3.2x
EV/Operating cash flow – 133.6x -3.2x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) – 0.35 -0.09

Growth

14 metrics
MetricRIOCLFLBSR
Revenue growth (1Y) – 7.8% –
Revenue CAGR (3Y) – -2.9% –
Gross profit growth (1Y) – 133.3% –
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) – -35.7% –
Operating income growth (1Y) – 83.5% 4.9%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) – -35.2% -18.1%
Net income growth (1Y) – 72.7% -1,123%
Net income CAGR (3Y) – -48.0% -28.7%
EPS growth (1Y) – 75.7% -711.2%
EPS CAGR (3Y) – -47.9% 22.8%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) – 112.6% -19.5%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) – -61.9% -19.2%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) – 68.6% -19.5%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) – -32.9% -19.2%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricRIOCLFLBSR
Gross margin – 1.5% –
EBITDA margin – 3.8% –
Operating margin – -1.4% –
Pretax margin – -3.4% –
Net margin – -2.4% –
FCF margin – -2.4% –
Operating cash flow margin – 0.6% –
Return on equity – -7.3% –
Return on assets – -2.1% -1,789%
Return on invested capital – -1.3% –
Return on capital employed – -1.7% –
Asset turnover – 1.0x –
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) – -0.3x 0.8x
Stock comp / revenue – – –

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricRIOCLFLBSR
Debt / assets – 37.6% 486.9%
Debt / equity 0.3x 1.3x -0.8x
Net debt / EBITDA – 9.8x -0.9x
Debt / FCF – -15.8x -0.5x
Liabilities / assets – 70.7% 691.1%
Equity / assets – 29.3% -591.1%
Interest coverage – – -1.4x
Current ratio 1.4x 1.9x 0.2x
Quick ratio 1.0x 0.6x 0.1x
Cash ratio 0.6x 0.0x 0.1x
Altman Z-score – 1.42 –

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricRIOCLFLBSR
Dividend yield 5.4% – –
Net buyback yield – – -41.2%
Shareholder yield 5.4% 0.0% -41.2%
Payout ratio (earnings) – – –
Payout ratio (FCF) – – –
Dividend growth (1Y) – – –
Dividend CAGR (3Y) – – –

Analyst Estimates

Solid lines are reported fiscal-year results; dashed lines are the consensus for the years ahead. Hover a year for the analysts' high and low, and how each result compared with its estimate.

ConsensusRIOCLFLBSR
Forward P/E 10.9xFY2026 – –
EPS, next fiscal year $7.84FY2026 $-0.01FY2026 –
EPS growth, next FY +17.2%FY2026 – –
EPS growth, the year after +9.1% – –
Revenue, next fiscal year $67.58BFY2026 $21.93BFY2026 –
Revenue growth, next FY +17.2%FY2026 +17.8%FY2026 –
Revenue growth, the year after -8.0% +1.2% –

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersRIOCLFLBSR
Held by institutions 7.9% 83.1% –
Institutions holding 968 583 –
Change in shares held, QoQ -1.1% +1.4% –
Institutions buying 504 279 –
Institutions selling 283 191 –
Buyers to sellers 1.78 1.46 –

Return Correlation

Daily returns, last 12 months

1.00 means two stocks move in lockstep, 0 that they move independently. Pairs below about 0.5 diversify each other.

RIOCLFLBSR
RIO 1.00 0.40 0.08
CLF 0.40 1.00 0.07
LBSR 0.08 0.07 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, RIO, CLF and LBSR?

Rio Tinto (RIO) is the largest by market capitalisation: Rio Tinto (RIO) $139.16B, Cleveland-Cliffs (CLF) $7.93B, Liberty Star Uranium & Metals (LBSR) $2.34M.

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Rio Tinto (RIO) returned the most: Rio Tinto (RIO) +20.9%, Cleveland-Cliffs (CLF) +0.9%, Liberty Star Uranium & Metals (LBSR) -75.0%. Over five years, Rio Tinto (RIO) compounded fastest (Rio Tinto (RIO) +5.9%/yr, Cleveland-Cliffs (CLF) -10.7%/yr, Liberty Star Uranium & Metals (LBSR) -48.7%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which pays a higher dividend?

Only one of these companies pays a dividend: Rio Tinto (RIO) 5.42%, Cleveland-Cliffs (CLF) 0.00%. Cleveland-Cliffs (CLF) and Liberty Star Uranium & Metals (LBSR) pays no regular dividend.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Rio Tinto (RIO) has been the steadiest (Rio Tinto (RIO) 30.7%, Cleveland-Cliffs (CLF) 67.3%, Liberty Star Uranium & Metals (LBSR) 225.4%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, RIO, CLF and LBSR?

There is no single answer; it depends on what you are buying for. On the 12 head-to-head measures on this page, Rio Tinto (RIO) leads on 4. Business Quant does not give investment advice; use the comparison as a starting point for your own research.

Data from SEC filings, exchange prices and consensus estimates, via Business Quant. Percentile scores compare each company with its own peer group, so two companies' scores are each relative to different peers unless you rank against the whole market. Price returns exclude dividends. Nothing on this page is investment advice.