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Glencore plc (GLEN.L)

Basic Materials Balanced

Glencore is a global giant that digs up, processes, and trades the raw materials—like copper, coal, and zinc—that keep the modern world running.

£5.43
≈ 543p · London-listed shares are usually quoted in pence (GBX) elsewhere; the Almanac shows pounds (£1 = 100p).

Is Glencore plc a good stock for a UK beginner?

The honest version: Glencore is a global giant that digs up, processes, and trades the raw materials—like copper, coal, and zinc—that keep the modern world running.

No rating · no target price · nothing for sale here
Price+26.3%
52-week range+66% past year
£5.43
Low £2.75High £7.07
Where today's price sits versus its past year - context, not a signal.
If you had put £1,000 into Glencore plc
£1,263+26%

Over about 2 years to 2026-07-31. This is the share price only - reinvesting the dividends would add to it. Past performance is not a guide to the future, and it could just as easily have fallen.

Market cap: The company's total value on the stock market - share price times the number of shares. Big = 'large-cap', small = 'small-cap'.
£63.63B
Avg volume: How many shares change hands on a typical day. Higher means it's easy to buy or exit without moving the price.
43.03M
Day range: The lowest and highest price the shares traded at during the latest day.
£5.35 – £5.56
52-week range: The lowest and highest the shares have traded over the past year - a sense of how wide the swings have been.
£2.75 – £7.07
P/E ratio: Price-to-earnings: the share price divided by yearly profit per share. Lower can mean cheaper; higher often means investors expect fast growth.
271.5
Dividend yield: The yearly dividend as a percentage of the share price - roughly the income you'd earn from dividends alone.
2.3%
Beta: How bumpy the share price is versus the whole market. Above 1 swings more than the market; below 1 is calmer. It's about the ride, not whether it goes up or down.
0.51
How bumpy is it?Beta: How bumpy the share price is versus the whole market. Above 1 swings more than the market; below 1 is calmer. It's about the ride, not whether it goes up or down. 0.51
Calm
Wild
Steadier than most

Based on beta - how much the price swings versus the whole market. Bumpier isn't bad; it just means a rougher ride, which matters more the sooner you might need the money.

Why has it been moving?▲ +1% past week · ▲ +66% past year

Prices move on results, news and the mood of the whole market - no single headline explains a day, and a quiet week is usually just noise, not a signal.

The bull case

Glencore becomes the primary supplier for the global electric vehicle battery market.

The bear case

A permanent shift away from traditional mining assets renders large parts of the business obsolete.

What does Glencore plc do?

Glencore operates in two main ways: it owns massive mines to extract natural resources, and it runs a huge trading business that moves these materials around the globe to where they are needed most. Because they deal in commodities, their profits often swing wildly depending on global demand and the market price of metals and energy. The balancing act worth watching is their traditional coal business versus the pivot toward green-transition metals like copper and cobalt.

VQGMI
Factor profile

On our factor screen it looks strongest on growth and momentum, and weakest on quality.

Value: How cheap the stock looks versus profits, sales and assets (higher = cheaper). 55Quality: How profitable and financially healthy the company is (higher = stronger). 14Growth: How fast revenue and earnings are growing (higher = faster). 77Momentum: How the share price has been trending recently (higher = stronger recent run). 57Income: The dividend income on offer and how sustainable it looks (higher = more/steadier). 26
Quick checks
What's strong
  • Growth screens high (77/100)
  • Massive scale and global reach in essential resources
  • Dual-model business provides a buffer between mining and trading
  • Strong position in metals critical for the green energy transition
What to watch
  • Quality screens low (14/100)
  • Income screens low (26/100)
  • Environmental and social regulations impacting mining operations
  • Geopolitical instability in regions where they operate
  • The long-term decline of coal demand as the world moves to cleaner energy

What do Glencore plc's numbers mean?

Forward P/E
11.6
This suggests that based on expected future earnings, investors are paying roughly 11.6 times what the company is predicted to make in profit over the next year.
P/S
0.2
This shows that for every pound of sales the company generates, the market currently values the business at only 20 pence, which is common for companies with very thin profit margins.
Net margin
0.1%
This tiny figure highlights that after all costs are paid, only a fraction of every pound of revenue actually stays in the company's pocket as profit.
Beta
0.5
A beta of 0.5 suggests the share price has historically been less jumpy and moved about half as much as the wider stock market.

Does Glencore plc pay a dividend?

Yes - Glencore plc currently pays a dividend of about 2.3% a year (the yearly payout as a share of the price). A dividend is a slice of profit handed to shareholders; the yield moves as the price moves, and a company can cut or stop it.

More in Basic Materials

CF IndustriesNewmontEndeavour MiningFresnilloNucorSteel Dynamics, Inc.Freeport-McMoRan Inc.Corteva, Inc.
Appears in
Big UK shares, explainedRio Tinto vs Glencore

What are the scenarios for Glencore plc?

An illustrative range for the year ahead, with the assumption behind each case — not a prediction or a price target.

£6£5£3today · £5▲ Bull · £6• Base · £5▼ Bear · £5in 1 yearILLUSTRATIVE · NOT A PREDICTION OR PRICE TARGET
Bull
+5% to +10%A sudden spike in global commodity prices boosts trading profits.
Base
-2% to +2%Commodity prices remain steady and trading volumes stay consistent.
Bear
-5% to -10%A global economic slowdown reduces the demand for raw materials.

What are the pros and cons of Glencore plc?

3bull points
6bear points

How many points the write-up makes each way — a balance check, not a score or verdict.

The bull case3
  • Massive scale and global reach in essential resources
  • Dual-model business provides a buffer between mining and trading
  • Strong position in metals critical for the green energy transition
The catch3
  • Extremely thin profit margins make the business sensitive to small cost changes
  • Heavy reliance on volatile global commodity prices
  • Complex business structure can be difficult for outsiders to analyse
Key risks3
  • Environmental and social regulations impacting mining operations
  • Geopolitical instability in regions where they operate
  • The long-term decline of coal demand as the world moves to cleaner energy
What would flip the thesis

The write-up's own warning lights — if these start happening, the case above changes.

Confidence: medium · data: GBP · flags: earnings_growth · Charts by TradingView Lightweight Charts™
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Built from public filings & market prices, checked for an education-only tone, and never a price target. How we make these →

This plain-English summary was auto-generated on 2026-08-01 from public data and checked for an education-only, no-advice tone (the figures above carry their own, usually fresher, 'as of' date). It's information, never a recommendation.

Figures as of 2026-08-01. Prices may be delayed and numbers can go stale - always double-check before acting.