Freeport McMoRan president and CEO Richard Adkerson
Photo by: Bloomberg
NYSE-listed Freeport-McMoRan on Thursday reported a drop in fourth-quarter revenue and net income, although the base metals miner finished the year on a stronger foot my than in 2017 and said it remained confident in the long-term outlook for copper.
The miner posted revenue of $3.68-billion in the fourth quarter, down 27% on that of the prior-year period, while net income declined to $140-million, from $1.04-billion a year earlier.
Adjusted earnings came to 11c a share, which is below analyst estimates of 18c a share, according to Reuters, which used data from Refinitiv.
For the full year, however, net income attributable to common shareholders increased by 24% to $2.3-billion, or $1.55 apiece, from $1.8-billion, or $1.25 apiece, in 2017.
The company sold 3.8-billion pounds of copper, 2.4-million ounces of gold and 94-million pounds of molybdenum for the year.
Consolidated sales for 2019, which reflects a transition year, are expected to be about 3.3-billion pounds of copper, 0.8-million ounces of gold and 94-million pounds of molybdenum.
"During 2018, our global team achieved strong operating results with an ongoing focus on safety, productivity, cost management and capital discipline. We were successful in establishing a new partnership with the Indonesian government, which protects our long-term value at Grasberg.
“We continued to strengthen our balance sheet, commenced development of an exciting new copper project at Lone Star in eastern Arizona, completed important construction projects to support long-term underground mining at Grasberg and added new reserves to our portfolio to extend mine lives and enhance future growth options,” said president and CEO Richard Adkerson.
In 2019, the company’s priorities are achieving milestones to ramp-up production from its large-scale underground assets in the Grasberg minerals district, continuing its focus on productivity and cost management, advancing the Lone Star project and defining future growth options from its large portfolio of reserves and resources.
“Despite recent market uncertainty, we remain confident in the fundamentals and long-term outlook for copper and the opportunities to deliver substantial value to shareholders from our premier portfolio of geographically diverse long-lived copper assets," said Adkerson.