Most operational and financial metrics were on the up for KAZ Minerals (KAZ) last year, as copper output, gold by-products, cash flow, gross cash costs and sales all rose against their 2017 comparatives. Even the copper price edged 6 per cent higher, despite a 20 per cent drop in the three months after the London Metal Exchange spot price hit a four-year high of $7,623 (£5,831) per tonne in June.
The flipside to this was the loss of investor trust that followed the Baimskaya acquisition, which completed in January. Fulfilling the cash portion of the deal means KAZ’s current assets are now $386m (£296m) lighter than the figures in the table below, while a further guarantee-related payment and the cost of a bankable feasibility study for the project will suck up at least $120m this year.
Other sources of capital outflows in 2019 include $470m committed to Aktogay’s expansion, $130m-worth of development works elsewhere, and $150m of sustaining expenditure. Such big spending means that, short of a copper price rally, investors should probably expect gearing to rise before falling.
Peel Hunt expects adjusted pre-tax profits of $797m and earnings of $1.39 a share in 2019, up from $674m and $1.21 last year.
| KAZ MINERALS (KAZ) | ||||
| ORD PRICE: | 662p | MARKET VALUE: | £3.11bn | |
| TOUCH: | 661-663p | 12-MONTH HIGH: | 1,103p | LOW: 422p |
| DIVIDEND YIELD: | 1.4% | PE RATIO: | 8 | |
| NET ASSET VALUE: | 223¢ | NET DEBT: | 188% | |
| Year to 31 Dec | Turnover ($bn) | Pre-tax profit ($m) | Earnings per share (¢) | Dividend per share (¢) |
| 2014 | 0.85 | -169 | -52 | nil |
| 2015 | 0.67 | 12 | -3 | nil |
| 2016 | 0.77 | 220 | 40 | nil |
| 2017 | 1.66 | 580 | 100 | nil |
| 2018 | 2.16 | 642 | 114 | 12 |
| % change | +30 | +11 | +14 | - |
| Ex-div: | 18 Apr | |||
| Payment: | 17 May | |||
| £1=$1.31 | ||||
