It looks like a good time to buy shares of one of the largest S&P/ASX 200
(ASX: XJO) mining shares at the current Rio Tinto Limited (ASX: RIO) share price.
Rio Tinto is one of the world’s biggest iron ore mining businesses. But there’s more to it than that. It’s also involved with copper, aluminium and lithium.
Since 8 June 2022, the Rio Tinto share price has fallen by around 20%. I think this could prove to be a long-term buying opportunity for investors interested in commodity businesses.
Cyclical
I think it’s important to recognise that most resource prices are essentially cyclical. Those cycles won’t always work in equal, obvious ways like the seasons of a calendar year. But, there are periods of strength and weakness as supply and demand changes.
The Rio Tinto share price is usually affected by changes in the iron ore price, and other commodities to a lesser extent. If I were going to buy Rio Tinto shares, I’d want it to be at the lowest price I can get. That’s likely to be during a commodity slump, when the outlook seems pessimistic. Share prices don’t fall by themselves.
There’s no guarantee that commodity prices will rise again, but I think the lower price means we can buy into Rio Tinto’s cashflow at a cheaper price.
Dividend yield
Rio Tinto can use its gigantic cashflow to pay very nice dividends
to shareholders. Obviously, lower resource prices will mean lower profit and lower dividends than before, but the lower Rio Tinto share price means that the dividend yield could still be good.
The broker Morgans thinks the Rio Tinto dividend yield, including the franking credits, will be 14.1% in FY22 and 14.8% in FY23. The dividend payments alone could be good.
Decarbonising
The world is heading towards decarbonisation and various resources will be needed like copper and lithium. Rio Tinto is building its exposure to both, so I think it’s good news for the long-term outlook of the company as it diversifies away from iron ore.
Rio Tinto is doing the right moves with its resource portfolio and I like that it’s looking to decarbonise its own operations as well, which should make it more appealing to greener-focused investors.
Summary thoughts
While Rio Tinto isn’t likely to deliver huge compounding returns, I think it can be a good idea to look at the shares when it has fallen significantly. I also like the dividend potential. That’s why, at the current Rio Tinto share price, I think it could be a decent medium-term opportunity. It would be even more interesting if it fell further.
