London, Feb 23, 2026, 08:40 GMT — Regular session
- Rio Tinto shares slipped a bit at the open in London, trading close to 7,100p.
- Goldman Sachs lowered its rating to Neutral and took its price target down to 7,400p.
- Metals prices are catching traders’ attention, with eyes also on the approaching dividend schedule.
Shares of Rio Tinto (RIO.L) dipped roughly 0.4% to 7,097 pence early Monday, feeling the weight of a new downgrade. The miner’s stock kicked off at 7,136p before swinging between 7,058p and 7,145p.
Goldman Sachs downgraded Rio Tinto to “Neutral” from “Buy” and trimmed the price target to 7,400 pence, down from 7,900 pence, per analyst Matt Greene’s note published late Sunday. Greene cited valuation concerns and pointed out the bank’s commodities team sees prices dropping in the near term. Still, he called Rio’s organic growth and simpler portfolio appealing. finanzen.ch
Rio is trading close to the upper limit of its recent range. According to Investing.com, the stock’s 52-week span runs from about 4,025p up to 7,421p. Analyst consensus calls for slight downside from here.
Rio’s annual earnings landed flat last week. Lower prices and rising costs dragged on the company’s main iron ore unit, even as copper delivered a stronger performance. Iron ore remained the biggest driver, making up around 60% of overall profit, according to Reuters, keeping the shares exposed to any disruption in the steelmaking supply chain.
Monday saw copper split the difference. Benchmark copper on the LME edged up 0.2% to $12,978.50 a metric ton by 0309 GMT, having earlier climbed to its highest in over a week as a weaker dollar lent some support, according to a Reuters report cited in local media.
Currencies are back in focus. “It weakens the dollar in the sense that it potentially benefits non-U.S. growth,” said Sim Moh Siong, currency strategist at OCBC Bank in Singapore. This followed a U.S. Supreme Court decision that wiped out a slew of tariffs, with Washington now turning to a temporary levy as a stopgap. Reuters
Right now, Rio holders are looking past speeches and zeroing in on pricing and positioning—iron ore, copper, and how the market’s interpreting signals from China as the week kicks off. When commodity prices look steady, broker notes can move a stock that’s already trading on that expectation.
The risks aren’t hard to spot. Should commodity prices ease up the way Goldman projects, or if iron ore unit costs refuse to budge, Rio’s cash flow could narrow fast—leaving dividend hopes on shakier ground.
On the calendar, the next obvious milestone is the dividend. According to Hargreaves Lansdown, Rio shares go ex-dividend on March 5, so investors buying after that miss out on the upcoming payout. Payment lands April 16.
