Freeport-McMoRan Inc. (NYSE: FCX) reported first-quarter 2016 results before markets opened Tuesday. The copper and gold miner reported an adjusted net loss per share of $0.16 on revenues of $3.53 billion. In the same period a year ago, Freeport-McMoRan reported an adjusted net loss per share of $0.06 on revenues of $4.15 billion. First-quarter results also compare to the consensus estimates for a net loss of $0.18 on revenues of $3.52 billion.
On a GAAP basis Freeport posted a quarterly net loss of $4.18 billion, or $3.35 per share. The loss was attributed primarily to lowered carrying value of oil and gas properties and idle rig costs among other items.
Freeport has also announced a new management structure and said Monday that it is instituting a workforce reduction of approximately 25% in its oil and gas segment. The company expects to record a charge of approximately $40 million in the second quarter associated with workforce reductions and other restructuring costs.
In the first quarter, Freeport agreed to sell a 13% stake in its Morenci mine for $1 billion and to sell an interest in its Timok exploration project for about $263 million. Another sale valued at $100 million was announced earlier this month.
CEO Richard C. Adkerson said:
During the first quarter, we remained focused on executing our plans to strengthen FCX’s balance sheet and to position the Company to enhance shareholder value in a challenging market environment. Our global team is successfully executing our plans, managing production efficiently and reducing costs and capital spending. We also achieved progress on our asset divestment program with $1.4 billion in announced transactions since the beginning of the year and expect to report additional progress in the second quarter. We believe the quality and scale of our assets provide opportunities for significant debt reduction while retaining a substantial business with attractive low-cost, long-lived reserves and resources that will enable our shareholders to benefit from improved conditions in the future.
Consolidated sales for the year 2016 are expected to reach about 5 billion pounds of copper, 1.85 million ounces of gold, 71 million pounds of molybdenum and 54.4 million barrels of oil equivalent, including 1.15 billion pounds of copper, 195 thousand ounces of gold, 19 million pounds of molybdenum and 13.5 million barrels of oil equivalent for second quarter. Projected consolidated copper sales have been adjusted for the anticipated closing of the Morenci transaction in second-quarter 2016. Anticipated higher grades from Freeport’s Grasberg (Indonesia) mine in the second half of 2016 are expected to result in approximately 55% of consolidated copper sales and 80% of consolidated gold sales to occur in the second half of the year.
Net cash costs per pound of copper came in at $1.38 a pound in the quarter, and Freeport projects a 2016 average cash cost of $1.05. Cash production costs per barrel of oil equivalent totaled $15.85 in the first quarter and the company expects to lower that to $15 for the year.
Shares closed down about 2.7% at $11.35 on Monday and were inactive in Tuesday’s premarket trading. The stock’s 52-week range is $3.52 to $23.97, and the consensus price target before Monday’s report was $9.29.
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