Miner Anglo American may have delivered a decent half-year dividend hike, but the shares still slipped on the back of these figures - which failed to meet analysts' expectations, despite downgrades following a production update earlier this month. Group operating profit fell 38 per cent year-on-year to $3.7bn (£2.4bn) - reflecting weakening commodity prices amidst a tough global economic environment and rising costs. Given that backdrop, a re-rating could take a while to materialise.
Output actually increased across Anglo's mining operations, but both revenues and operating profits for its key segments were substantially down compared to 2011's half-year performance. Iron ore production, for instance, grew 15 per cent to 24.6m tonnes, but operating profits fell 28 per cent to $1.78bn - reflecting weaker export prices and cost increases. And, while copper sales rose on the back of the ongoing ramp-up at the Los Bonces mine in Chile, operating profits within the segment shrank 30 per cent on lower realised prices and ore grades. Profits were also held back by a 140 per cent hike in combined corporate and exploration costs, to $197m.
Broker RBC Capital expects full-year EPS of 391¢ (2011: 510¢).
| ANGLO AMERICAN (AAL) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ORD PRICE: | 1,885p | MARKET VALUE: | £26.2bn | |
| TOUCH: | 1,883-1,885p | 12-MONTH HIGH: | 3,105p | LOW: 1,877p |
| DIVIDEND YIELD: | 2.7% | PE RATIO: | 11 | |
| NET ASSET VALUE: | 2,922¢ | NET DEBT: | 7% | |
| Half-year to 30 June | Turnover ($bn) | Pre-tax profit ($bn) | Earnings per share (¢) | Dividend per share (¢) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 | 15.2 | 6.57 | 330 | 28.0 |
| 2012 | 13.7 | 2.94 | 98.0 | 32.0 |
| % change | -10 | -55 | -70 | +14 |
Ex-div:15 Aug Payment:13 Sep £1 = $1.55 | ||||
