Materials on the Move: 3 Giants Riding the Sector Surge

A Quiet Outperformer: The Basic Materials Sector

While tech stocks often dominate headlines, the basic materials sector has quietly been on a tear. Looking at the 1-year chart from Yahoo Finance, basic materials have returned +48.21%, easily outpacing the S&P 500’s +19.74%.

This outperformance is largely driven by renewed demand in chemicals, metals, mining, and construction materials. And when a sector is strong, smart investors zoom in on the biggest names in that space.

Let’s take a closer look at the 3 largest players in the sector by market cap…

🧪 Linde (LIN): The Chemical Powerhouse

💰 Market Cap: $207.4B

🔬 What It Does: Linde is the largest industrial gas company in the world, supplying gases and services to a wide range of industries, from healthcare and food processing to electronics and manufacturing..

📈 What to Know:

• Linde's Q4 results were solid, with strong project backlogs and continued global demand for clean hydrogen and industrial gases.

• The company maintained its 2025 full-year EPS guidance at $16.35–$16.45, despite macro challenges, showing resilience.

• Management highlighted new project wins and ongoing efficiency improvements, especially in Asia and Europe.

• It’s also seen as a long-term player in clean energy and carbon capture, two areas with major future upside.

📊 Technical View: After hitting a low near $390 in December, LIN rebounded sharply, rising over 10% in just one month. It hints at a potential uptrend reversal, but more confirmation is needed from longer-term moving averages

⛏️ BHP Group (BHP): A Mining Giant

💰 Market Cap: $156.7B

🌎 What It Does: BHP is one of the world’s largest mining companies, producing copper, iron ore, coal, and other critical resources for global development.

📈 What to Know:

• BHP’s latest earnings showed strong commodity prices and continued strength in iron ore, which accounts for a major share of profits.

• The company emphasized operational discipline, capital efficiency, and a strong balance sheet, allowing it to return value to shareholders.

• It also has exposure to copper, a metal increasingly seen as essential for electrification and EVs.

📊Technical View: Uptrend remains intact. The stock has flashed 3 consecutive bullish signals, and it’s now trading at multi-year highs. Momentum is strong, and trend-following investors may already be riding this wave.

🟠 Southern Copper (SCCO): Copper’s Crown Jewel

💰 Market Cap: $139.7B

🔌 What It Does: Southern Copper is a major copper producer with mining operations in Peru and Mexico. Copper is a vital metal for everything from construction to EV batteries.

📈 What to Know:

• SCCO posted strong Q3 earnings, driven by rising copper prices and higher output.

• The company is focusing on long-term expansion projects to boost production capacity.

• As global electrification trends accelerate, copper demand is expected to soar, positioning SCCO for continued tailwinds.

📊Technical View: SCCO has seen a 15%+ surge in just two weeks. With the uptrend firmly intact, the stock may need to cool off. Watch for price stabilisation and new support levels before jumping in, as chasing highs can be risky.

Final Take: Big Names, Big Moves

The materials sector isn’t always the most exciting but lately, it’s been quietly outperforming.

With strong price action, growing global demand, and renewed interest in industrials and metals, these 3 giants (Linde, BHP, and SCCO) are worth keeping an eye on.

As always, remember to do your own due diligence research and apply risk management to guide your decisions. If this trend continues, the materials story may just be getting started.

Hope you have found the above stocks useful 😃 

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Sources:
1. Largest companies by market cap in the materials sector Available at: https://www.fool.com/research/largest-materials-companies/
2. Southern Copper Corporation (SCCO) Q3 2025 Earnings Call Transcript. Available at: https://seekingalpha.com/article/4834870-southern-copper-corporation-scco-q3-2025-earnings-call-transcript 
3. BHP Group Limited (BHP) Q4 2025 Earnings Call Transcript Available at: https://seekingalpha.com/article/4836352-bhp-group-limited-bhp-q4-2025-earnings-call-transcript
4. Linde targets $16.35–$16.45 full-year EPS as project backlog remains robust amid macro challenges. Available at: https://seekingalpha.com/news/4512540-linde-targets-16_35-16_45-full-year-eps-as-project-backlog-remains-robust-amid-macro 

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