Published: 3 December 2025
Anglo American plc’s London‑listed shares are trading around 2,913p, up about 2% on the day and roughly 15.5% over the past year, as investors digest BHP’s abandoned takeover, a looming shareholder vote on the Teck Resources “merger of equals”, and a fresh push into low‑carbon metals. [1]
Key takeaways
- Share price and volatility: Anglo American (AAL.L) closed at 2,913p in London on 3 December 2025, near the upper end of its 52‑week range of 1,641p–3,008p, with a high beta of about 1.8 and year‑to‑date gains of roughly 24%. [2]
- BHP walks away (again): BHP’s latest approach, worth around £40bn (about £34 per share, a 24% premium), was rejected; the group has now formally withdrawn and is barred by UK takeover rules from making another bid for six months. [3]
- Teck merger in focus: Anglo plans to merge with Canada’s Teck Resources to form “Anglo Teck”, a top‑five copper producer with more than 70% exposure to copper. Shareholder meetings are scheduled for 9 December 2025, and Canada has launched a national‑security review of the deal. [4]
- Portfolio overhaul: Anglo has spun off platinum (Valterra), agreed to sell its nickel business for up to $500m, is trying again to sell steelmaking coal and plans to separate De Beers, doubling down on copper, iron ore and crop nutrients. [5]
- Mixed analyst view: Consensus ratings cluster around “Hold” on the London line, with 12‑month price targets ranging from about 1,900p to 3,500p depending on the provider; forecasts for the U.S. ADR (NGLOY) sit in the low‑$20s. [6]
- Long‑term copper story: Global analysts warn of a looming copper crunch as AI data centres and the energy transition drive demand faster than new mines can be built — a backdrop that underpins the Anglo–Teck deal and ongoing M&A speculation. [7]
Note: This article is for information only and does not constitute investment advice. Prices and figures are as of 3 December 2025 unless stated otherwise.
Anglo American share price on 3 December 2025
On the London Stock Exchange, Anglo American closed at 2,913p, up 57p (2.0%) versus Tuesday’s 2,856p. Intraday, the stock traded between 2,870p and 2,916p on relatively light volume of about 131,000 shares, compared with an average daily volume north of 5 million. [8]
Over the past year, the share price has climbed around 15.5%, helped by rising copper prices and repeated takeover interest. The 52‑week low of about 1,641p was recorded in April, with a high of 3,008p in early October. [9]
Data providers put Anglo’s beta at roughly 1.8, highlighting that the stock tends to move more sharply than the broader market. [10] Stocksguide estimates the 2025 year‑to‑date total return at about 24%, reflecting both price gains and dividends. [11]
The current market capitalisation sits near £34bn, based on FT data, putting Anglo firmly among the larger FTSE 100 miners but still smaller than rivals like BHP and Rio Tinto. [12]
BHP’s aborted £40bn takeover: premium on paper, no deal in practice
The biggest short‑term driver of Anglo’s share price has been BHP’s second failed attempt to acquire the company.
The offer
Reports from Mining.com, Moneyweb and Investing.com indicate that BHP’s latest proposal, made in late November, valued Anglo American at around £40bn, or roughly £34 per share, representing a 24% premium to Anglo’s 20 November close of £27.36. The offer was largely in BHP shares with a cash component. [13]
Anglo’s board rejected the proposal, judging that the company’s own plan — particularly the merger with Teck Resources and its portfolio overhaul — would deliver greater long‑term value. [14]
Withdrawal and standstill
On 24 November BHP publicly confirmed it was walking away from talks. Under UK securities rules, that statement triggered a six‑month standstill during which BHP cannot make another offer for Anglo unless specific exemptions apply or circumstances change materially. [15]
MarketWatch notes that this is the second time BHP has retreated after pursuing Anglo, leaving “the path clear” for the Teck merger in the near term but not ruling out future attempts once the standstill expires. [16]
Market reaction
The immediate reaction to BHP’s withdrawal was sharp: Anglo shares slumped on 24 November as the implied takeover premium evaporated, with MarketMinute describing a steep intraday plunge. [17] Since then, the stock has stabilised just below 3,000p as investors refocus on the Teck transaction and the company’s standalone fundamentals.
The Teck Resources merger: building “Anglo Teck”
With BHP sidelined, attention has swung to Anglo’s plan to merge with Teck Resources in an all‑share “merger of equals” to create Anglo Teck, headquartered in Vancouver.
Deal structure and strategic logic
According to Teck’s merger microsite, Anglo Teck would: [18]
- Combine six world‑class copper assets plus a major zinc mine and two highly cash‑generative premium iron‑ore operations.
- Target 1.2 million tonnes of copper production at closing, rising to about 1.35 million tonnes in 2027 from existing projects.
- Derive over 70% of its exposure from copper, with the remainder largely from zinc and premium iron ore.
- Generate an estimated US$800m of recurring annual synergies, plus around US$1.4bn of EBITDA synergies from the Collahuasi and Quebrada Blanca (QB) copper operations.
Teck shareholders are expected to own roughly 37.6% of the combined company on a fully diluted basis, with Anglo shareholders owning the balance. [19]
Timetable and shareholder votes
Anglo’s shareholder circular, published 10 November, sets 9 December 2025 as the date for both the Anglo general meeting in London and Teck’s special shareholder meeting. [20]
Proxy advisory heavyweights ISS and Glass Lewis have recommended that Teck shareholders vote in favour of the merger, a positive signal for management’s case. [21]
Canadian national‑security review
The merger, valued at around $53–60bn depending on share prices, is subject to regulatory approvals in several jurisdictions, notably Canada, the U.S. and China. [22]
Canada’s industry minister Mélanie Joly has confirmed that the deal will undergo a national‑security review under the Investment Canada Act, reflecting concerns about control over critical minerals such as copper and germanium. The review will also scrutinise commitments on Canadian jobs and investment, especially around Teck’s Highland Valley Copper mine. [23]
Both Anglo and Teck shares rose after the review was announced, suggesting markets currently see regulatory scrutiny as a manageable hurdle rather than a deal‑killer. [24]
Portfolio simplification: slimming down to copper, iron ore and crop nutrients
Anglo American’s strategic pivot predates BHP’s latest advance but has accelerated since.
Platinum: demerger and exit from Valterra
In May 2025 Anglo spun off most of its stake in Anglo American Platinum, now listed as Valterra Platinum, to existing shareholders. [25]
Reuters reports that in September Anglo launched a bookbuild to sell its remaining 19.9% holding, valued at about $2.4bn, marking a full exit from platinum. The move also raises additional cash to fund the Teck deal and balance‑sheet flexibility. [26]
Nickel and steelmaking coal
In February 2025, Anglo agreed to sell its nickel business to MMG’s Singapore arm for up to $500m, further reducing exposure to smaller, non‑core units. [27]
The company has also been trying to offload its steelmaking coal assets. An earlier sale process stalled in August, but Anglo has indicated it remains confident of finding a buyer through a renewed process. [28]
De Beers and other assets
The 2025 interim report describes De Beers as “in process” of separation, signalling Anglo’s intent to exit the diamond business and concentrate capital on metals aligned with decarbonisation and food security, including its Woodsmith polyhalite fertiliser project in the UK. [29]
Financial performance in 2025: a year of transition
The portfolio reshaping has coincided with weaker earnings.
For the six months to 30 June 2025, Anglo reported: [30]
- Revenue of about US$9.0bn, down 7% year on year.
- Underlying EBITDA of roughly US$3.0bn, down 20%, with margins narrowing from 37% to 32%.
- Copper and premium iron‑ore businesses delivering standout EBITDA margins of 48% and 44%, respectively, despite softer diamond trading.
- An underlying EPS of US$0.32, down 55% from US$0.71.
- A net loss attributable to shareholders of around US$1.9bn, versus a US$0.7bn loss a year earlier, reflecting impairments and restructuring costs.
- A sharply reduced interim dividend of US$0.07 per share, down 83% year on year, consistent with a new 40% payout policy on underlying earnings.
The company emphasised progress on cost savings, citing US$1.3bn of cumulative savings delivered by mid‑2025 against a US$1.8bn target, and strong cash conversion of about 108%. [31]
Valuation, dividends and balance‑sheet snapshot
Valuation multiples
FT’s data show Anglo trading at: [32]
- Price/sales of roughly 1.8–1.9x trailing revenue.
- Price/NAV (book value) close to 2.0x on South African metrics.
- A negative trailing P/E (around –10x on some data sets) due to recent losses, with forward P/E estimates above 40x, reflecting depressed current earnings and expectations of recovery.
These numbers paint a picture of a miner priced more for its asset base and copper growth options than for near‑term earnings power.
Dividend profile
Anglo’s annualised cash dividend currently stands near 23.8p per share, implying a yield of about 0.8–2.0% depending on methodology and FX assumptions. [33]
What matters more is the direction of travel: Stocksguide calculates that the dividend for 2024 (around 55p per share) has been cut by more than a third, and the five‑year average dividend yield of ~7% is far above today’s level. [34]
Combined with a high forward P/E, this suggests investors are paying for strategic optionality (Teck synergies, asset sales, copper upside) rather than current income.
Analyst ratings and price targets: cautiously constructive
Analyst views are mixed but cluster around neutral to mildly positive.
London‑listed shares (AAL.L)
On MarketBeat, which tracks five London‑based brokers, Anglo American carries a consensus “Hold” rating: three analysts rate the stock a hold and two a buy. The average 12‑month target price is 2,532p, with a range from 1,900p to 3,100p, implying roughly 12.6% downside from a reference price of 2,897p. [35]
FT’s forecast page aggregates a slightly broader group of analysts. In USD terms, 15 analysts have a median 12‑month target of about 2,999p, with a high estimate near 3,499p and a low around 2,000p, corresponding to roughly 5% upside from a last price of 2,856p. [36]
TradingView combines the two by presenting a price target of 2,897.55p, almost exactly in line with the current share price, based on a range of 2,028–3,529p and input from 20 analysts over the past three months. The platform labels the stock a “buy” overall, while noting that many individual ratings are neutral. [37]
New York–traded ADR (NGLOY)
For U.S. investors following the over‑the‑counter ADR, Stockscan and other U.S. data providers quote average 12‑month targets in the low‑$20s, with long‑term scenario models projecting potential upside into the high‑$20s by the late 2020s. [38]
Yahoo Finance commentary (based on U.S. coverage) notes that the consensus ADR price target has edged down slightly, from about $29.48 to $29.18, reflecting modestly trimmed earnings assumptions rather than a wholesale change in narrative. [39]
A split verdict
Taken together, the analyst community seems to be saying:
- The stock is no longer obviously cheap after a 20–25% rally in 2025 and the evaporation of BHP’s takeover premium. [40]
- Upside depends heavily on copper, Teck synergies and successful asset disposals, rather than on quick earnings growth from the existing portfolio. [41]
Decarbonisation and innovation: the Ironic Metals bet
A less headline‑grabbing but strategically important story on 3 December is Anglo’s backing of Ironic Metals, a start‑up developing an electro‑chemical route to “green” iron and nickel.
Coverage from AZO Mining and EngineerLive explains that Ironic Metals is building a novel electrolyser that uses renewable electricity to produce high‑purity iron and nickel, targeting production costs as low as $400 per tonne for high‑purity iron while effectively eliminating the “green premium” associated with low‑carbon metals. [42]
For Anglo, which is already a major producer of iron ore and nickel (pending asset sales), such technology could:
- Deepen relationships with steelmakers under pressure to decarbonise.
- Enhance the value of its remaining iron‑ore assets by enabling low‑carbon downstream processes.
- Complement FutureSmart Mining and other ESG‑oriented initiatives that matter increasingly to both regulators and lenders. [43]
While early‑stage and unproven at scale, this kind of investment illustrates how Anglo is trying to position itself not just as a volume supplier of raw materials but as a partner in decarbonisation — a theme that fits neatly with the copper‑heavy Anglo Teck narrative.
Macro backdrop: the copper crunch powering the story
The strategic logic behind both the Teck merger and BHP’s interest is the same: copper.
Recent analysis from the Financial Times and MoneyWeek highlights a looming copper shortage driven by: [44]
- Surging demand from AI data centres, which can require more than twice as much copper per megawatt as traditional networks.
- Electrification of transport and heating, as grids are upgraded to accommodate EVs, heat pumps and renewables.
- Limited new mine development, with ore grades falling and permitting times stretching toward a decade or more.
Wood Mackenzie and others forecast copper demand rising roughly 24% by 2035, requiring millions of tonnes of new supply that are not yet fully funded. [45]
In that context, Anglo’s combination with Teck — creating a top‑five global copper producer with a pipeline of brownfield expansions and adjacency projects — is widely seen as a strategic response to structural scarcity, and a key reason why BHP may revisit the asset once permitted to do so. [46]
Key risks and what investors are watching next
For shareholders and potential investors, several milestones and risk factors stand out:
- 9 December 2025 votes: The Anglo and Teck shareholder meetings will be the first major hurdle for the merger. Strong support would reduce execution risk; any surprise opposition could reopen debates around stand‑alone strategies or alternative suitors. [47]
- Regulatory approvals: Canada’s national‑security review, along with U.S., Chinese and other competition clearances, could impose conditions ranging from asset sales to investment and employment commitments. [48]
- Copper price trajectory: Anglo’s earnings leverage to copper and premium iron ore means a cyclical downturn could pressure cash flow just as the group is integrating Teck and disposing of non‑core assets. [49]
- Asset sale execution: Successfully selling steelmaking coal, De Beers and remaining non‑core assets at attractive valuations is critical for funding growth, keeping leverage in check and supporting future dividends. [50]
- Future M&A: Once the standstill expires, BHP or other majors could return, especially if Anglo Teck trades at a discount to copper peers. UK takeover rules and shareholder sentiment will heavily shape that outcome. [51]
Bottom line: Anglo American on 3 December 2025
As of 3 December 2025, Anglo American sits at the intersection of three powerful forces:
- A transformational merger that could make it a copper‑centric giant with self‑funded growth and substantial synergies.
- A portfolio cleanup that is painful for near‑term earnings and dividends but aimed at sharpening strategic focus.
- A tightening global copper market where the winners may command premium valuations if they can execute.
The share price near 2,900p suggests markets are no longer pricing a clear bargain, but nor are they fully crediting the potential of an integrated Anglo Teck. With BHP temporarily sidelined, the next decisive moment for the stock is likely to come within days, when shareholders vote on whether Anglo should bet its future on copper in an even bigger way.
References
1. markets.ft.com, 2. markets.ft.com, 3. www.mining.com, 4. www.teck.com, 5. www.angloamerican.com, 6. www.marketbeat.com, 7. www.ft.com, 8. markets.ft.com, 9. markets.ft.com, 10. markets.ft.com, 11. stocksguide.com, 12. markets.ft.com, 13. www.mining.com, 14. www.mining.com, 15. www.reuters.com, 16. www.marketwatch.com, 17. markets.financialcontent.com, 18. www.teck.com, 19. www.teck.com, 20. www.angloamerican.com, 21. www.teck.com, 22. www.reuters.com, 23. www.reuters.com, 24. www.reuters.com, 25. www.angloamerican.com, 26. www.reuters.com, 27. www.angloamerican.com, 28. www.reuters.com, 29. www.angloamerican.com, 30. www.angloamerican.com, 31. www.angloamerican.com, 32. markets.ft.com, 33. markets.ft.com, 34. stocksguide.com, 35. www.marketbeat.com, 36. markets.ft.com, 37. www.tradingview.com, 38. stockinvest.us, 39. finance.yahoo.com, 40. markets.ft.com, 41. www.teck.com, 42. www.azomining.com, 43. www.angloamerican.com, 44. www.ft.com, 45. moneyweek.com, 46. www.teck.com, 47. www.angloamerican.com, 48. www.reuters.com, 49. www.angloamerican.com, 50. www.angloamerican.com, 51. www.reuters.com


