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In late July, Freeport-McMoRan FCX came out with quarterly earnings of $0.58 per share, missing the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $0.76 per share. This compares to earnings of $0.77 per share a year ago. These figures are adjusted for non-recurring items.
This quarterly report represents an earnings surprise of -23.68%. A quarter ago, it was expected that this $40 billion mining company would post earnings of $0.88 per share when it actually produced earnings of $1.07, delivering a surprise of 21.59%.
Over the last four quarters, the company has surpassed consensus EPS estimates two times.
Freeport-McMoRan, which belongs to the Zacks Mining – Non Ferrous industry, posted revenues of $5.42 billion for the quarter ended June 2022, missing the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 15.48%. This compares to year-ago revenues of $5.75 billion. The company has topped consensus revenue estimates just once over the last four quarters.
Freeport-McMoRan (FCX) recorded net income of $840 million or 57 cents per share in second-quarter 2022, down from $1,083 million or 73 cents in the year-ago quarter.
Company and Quarter Details
Based in Phoenix, AZ, Freeport-McMoRan Inc., formerly Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold Inc., is engaged in mineral exploration and development, including mining and milling of copper, gold, molybdenum and silver, as well as the smelting and refining of copper concentrates.
The company conducts its operations primarily through its principal operating subsidiaries, PT Freeport Indonesia (PT-FI), Freeport-McMoRan Corporation (formerly Phelps Dodge) and Atlantic Copper.
PT Freeport Indonesia’s principal asset is Papua, Indonesia-based Grasberg mine, which contains the world’s largest copper and gold reserves.
Barring one-time items, adjusted earnings per share came in at 58 cents, missing the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 76 cents.
Revenues declined roughly 5.8% year over year to $5,416 million. The figure missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $6,407.8 million.
Copper production rose 17.7% year over year to 1,075 million pounds in the second quarter.
Consolidated sales from mines rose 17% year over year to 1,087 million pounds of copper. The company sold 476,000 ounces of gold and 20 million pounds of molybdenum during the quarter.
Consolidated average unit net cash costs per pound of copper were $1.41, down about 4.7% year over year. The downside was caused by higher sales volume and by-product credits.
The average realized price for copper was $4.03 per pound, down roughly 7.1% year over year. The average realized price per ounce for gold increased around 1.8% year over year to $1,827. The average realized price per pound for molybdenum was $19.44, up around 48.3% year over year.
Financial Position
Cash and cash equivalents at the end of the second quarter were $9,492 million, up 17.6% year over year. The company’s long-term debt was $10,054 million, up around 10.8% year over year.
Cash flows provided by operations were $3,312 million for the six months ended Jun 30, 2022.
Guidance
For 2022, Freeport anticipates consolidated sales volumes to be roughly 4.2 billion pounds of copper.
The company also expects gold sales volumes of 1.7 million ounces for 2022. It also expects sales of 80 million pounds of molybdenum for the year.
For the third quarter of 2022, Freeport expects sales volumes to be 1 billion pounds of copper, 400,000 ounces of gold and 21 million pounds of molybdenum.
As this guidance has been digested, FCX has seen EPS estimates move 30% lower for this year and 35% lower for next year, pushing the stock into the cellar of the Zacks Rank.
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