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What's pushing the BHP share price higher?
It's certainly an interesting situation given there is just one buy rating among 11 experts since the miner released its results.
That buy call came from Morgan Stanley.
The top broker retained its buy call on the ASX 200 mining giant and raised its 12-month target from $67 to $67.50 post-results.
That was the highest target price among the 11 experts.
Nine experts reiterated their hold calls on BHP shares after the FY26 report.
However, Morgans downgraded the ASX 200 mining share to a sell with a $55.30 target, implying a 19% downside ahead.
The lowest 12-month target among the 11 brokers is $51.43 from Deutsche Bank.
This suggests a potential 24% downside over the next 12 months.
What did BHP report for FY26?
BHP reported a record underlying earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortisation (EBITDA) of US$32.9 billion for FY26.
That was 27% higher than FY25.
A 6% unit cost reduction across major assets and increased production at its coal and iron ore mines contributed to a 30% profit boost.
Underlying attributable profit came in at US$13.2 billion, up 30%, and net operating cash flow was US$21.8 billion, up 17%.
While BHP has a long history as an iron ore giant, in recent years, it has become the world's largest copper producer.
The red metal accounted for 54% of BHP's EBITDA in FY26.
What else is going on?
The copper price is up 0.3% to US$6.61 per pound on Tuesday.
Copper hit a new all-time price peak of US$6.71 per pound on 5 August amid higher demand due to the green energy transition.
The copper price is up 16% in the 2026 calendar year so far and up 48% over 12 months.
The iron ore price is up 0.14% to US$95.34 per tonne today.
Iron ore slipped below US$100 per tonne just after the start of the new financial year.
This followed about three years of trading mostly above it.
Trading Economics analysts explained the recent weakness:
China's steel output fell 3.6% year-on-year to 76.93 million tons in July, the lowest for the month since 2017, while inventories remained elevated.
Weak property activity weighed on demand, with home prices down 3.2% year-on-year, while only about one-third of steelmakers were profitable.
China's July iron ore imports also fell 4% month-on-month to 108.09 million tons as shrinking steel margins prompted some mills to undertake maintenance.
However, fresh stimulus measures and expectations of higher demand ahead of the September peak season are supporting the iron ore price today.
China is planning measures to boost domestic demand and growth.
The National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) is also urging local governments to accelerate major projects.
Chinese steel production is a key driver of global iron ore demand.
