Like most gold miners, shares in Centamin (CEY) are well up this year, but financial results for 2015 were a mixed bag. A drop in all-in sustaining costs from $912 (£633) to $885 per ounce was considerably below guidance, but exploration write-offs and a tax charge on foreign exchange gains hit the bottom line. An average realised gold price of just $1,159, down 8 per cent on 2014, didn't help either.
There were bright spots, though. The balance sheet now looks far more robust, with cash, bullion and held-for-sale assets more than trebling to $231m, while a fourth-quarter fall in cash operating costs to just $667 an ounce bodes well for an uptick in this year's free cash flow (and by extension the dividend).
The legal battle over the Sukari mine in Egypt could also soon be resolved. A judgment on Centamin's appeal to nullify the mine's concession agreement has now been set for 24 May, although a favourable ruling for the miner may be passed on an interim basis pending a legal review by the country's highest court.
Analysts at Canaccord Genuity are forecasting full-year cash profits of $254m, giving adjusted EPS of 13¢, against $156m and 6¢ for 2015.
CENTAMIN (CEY) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ORD PRICE: | 92p | MARKET VALUE: | £1.06bn | |
| TOUCH: | 92-92.2p | 12-MONTH HIGH: | 100p | LOW: 52p |
| DIVIDEND YIELD: | 2.2% | PE RATIO: | 29 | |
| NET ASSET VALUE: | 117¢ | NET CASH: | $200m | |
| Year to 31 Dec | Turnover ($m) | Pre-tax profit ($m) | Earnings per share (¢) | Dividend per share (¢) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 | 340 | 194 | 17.9 | nil |
| 2012 | 426 | 199 | 18.3 | nil |
| 2013 | 504 | 184 | 16.9 | nil |
| 2014 | 473 | 81.6 | 7.2 | 2.86 |
| 2015 | 508 | 58.4 | 4.5 | 2.94 |
| % change | +8 | -28 | -37 | +3 |
Ex-div: 21 Apr Payment: 27 May £1=$1.44 | ||||
