How much a stock's price changes over time is important for most investors, since price performance can both impact your investment portfolio and help you compare investment results across sectors and industries.
Another factor that can influence investors is FOMO, or the fear of missing out, especially with tech giants and popular consumer-facing stocks.
What if you'd invested in BHP (BHP) ten years ago? It may not have been easy to hold on to BHP for all that time, but if you did, how much would your investment be worth today?
BHP's Business In-Depth
With that in mind, let's take a look at BHP's main business drivers.
BHP Group Limited is one of the world's largest mining companies, with operations spanning Australia, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Peru, and the United States, and a market capitalization of approximately $156 billion. It is a leading producer of iron ore, copper and metallurgical coal and is making strides to move into potash production.
The company’s Minerals Australia operations include iron ore and nickel operations in Western Australia, metallurgical (steel-making) and energy coal in Queensland and New South Wales, and copper in South Australia.
The Minerals Americas group includes projects, operated assets and non-operated joint ventures in Canada, Chile, Peru, the United States and Brazil. Its projects focus on copper, iron ore and potash. The company has more than 90,000 employees and contractors, who work in more than 90 locations worldwide.
BHP’s segments are-
Iron Ore (around 45% of the company’s fiscal 2025 revenues) is engaged in the mining of iron ore. The Western Australia Iron Ore (WAIO) business contains five mines in the Pilbara region.
The Copper segment (44% of the company’s revenues) is engaged in mining of copper, uranium, gold, zinc, molybdenum and silver. BHP owns and operates copper mines in Chile (Escondida and Pampa Norte), South Australia (Olympic Dam, Carrapateena and Prominent Hill), and a 45% stake in proposed mine located in Arizona, U.S (Resolution Copper). The company also has a 33.75% stake in Antamina, Peru project, which is a joint venture between BHP, Glencore, Teck Resources and Mitsubishi Corporation.
The Coal segment (10% of revenues) is engaged in the mining of steelmaking and energy coal. BHP has five operating coal mines in the Bowen Basin area of Central Queensland in Australia.
The company is investing in the Jansen project in Saskatchewan to produce potash starting mid-2027. Once fully ramped up, Jansen is expected to have an initial production capacity of approximately 8.5 million tons per annum (Mtpa), with the potential to produce 16 to 17 Mtpa in the future.
In July 2024, BHP decided to transition Western Australia Nickel into a period of temporary suspension due to lower prices.
Bottom Line
Putting together a successful investment portfolio takes a combination of research, patience, and a little bit of risk. For BHP, if you bought shares a decade ago, you're likely feeling really good about your investment today.
A $1000 investment made in February 2016 would be worth $3,577.75, or a 257.77% gain, as of February 26, 2026, according to our calculations. Investors should note that this return excludes dividends but includes price increases.
In comparison, the S&P 500's gained 255.90% and the price of gold went up 303.87% over the same time frame.
Going forward, analysts are expecting more upside for BHP.
BHP witnessed a 1% dip in iron ore output, while copper production was up 4% in the first quarter of fiscal 2026. It projects iron ore production at 258-269 Mt for fiscal 2026. The midpoint indicates in-line results with fiscal 2025. Western Australia Iron Ore (WAIO) continues to perform well and maintains its position as the lowest-cost iron ore producer. Copper guidance of 1,900-2,000 kt indicates a 3% decline at the midpoint, reflecting planned lower grades in Chile. Iron ore and copper prices have gained lately, which will boost its results in the forthcoming quarters. BHP's portfolio shift toward commodities like copper and potash will help it ride on growing global trends such as decarbonization and electrification. Aided by its strong cash flow, BHP has lowered its debt over the past few years, which is commendable.
The stock has jumped 15.11% over the past four weeks. Additionally, no earnings estimate has gone lower in the past two months, compared to 2 higher, for fiscal 2025; the consensus estimate has moved up as well.
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BHP Group Limited Sponsored ADR (BHP): Free Stock Analysis ReportThis article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).
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