Barrick Gold Corporation
GOLD
recorded net earnings (on a reported basis) of $726 million or 41 cents per share in fourth-quarter 2021, up from $685 million or 39 cents per share in the year-ago quarter.
Barring one-time items, adjusted earnings per share were 35 cents. The figure beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 30 cents.
Barrick recorded total sales of $3,310 million, up 0.9% year over year. The figure missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $3,424.4 million. Results in the reported quarter were hurt by lower gold prices.
Barrick Gold Corporation Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise
Barrick Gold Corporation price-consensus-eps-surprise-chart
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Barrick Gold Corporation Quote
Operational Highlights
Total gold production amounted to around 1.2 million ounces in the fourth quarter, flat year over year. Nevada Gold Mines attained the highest quarterly production since its formation. The average realized price of gold was $1,793 per ounce in the quarter, down 4.2% year over year.
Cost of sales increased 0.9% year over year to $1,075 per ounce. All-in sustaining costs (AISC) moved up around 4.5% year over year to $971 per ounce in the quarter.
Copper production increased 5.9% year over year to 126 million pounds. The average realized copper price was $4.63 per pound, up 36.6% year over year.
FY21 Results
Earnings (as reported) for full-year 2021 were $1.14 per share compared with earnings of $1.31 per share a year ago. Net sales declined 5% year over year to around $11,985 million.
Financial Position
At the end of the quarter, Barrick had cash and cash equivalents of $5,280 million, up 1.8% year over year. The company’s total debt was $5,176 million at the end of the quarter, down 0.1% year over year.
Net cash provided by operating activities declined 15.3% year over year to $1,387 million for the quarter.
The company’s board authorized a share repurchase program allowing it to repurchase of up to $1 billion of its outstanding common shares over the next 12 months. Its board also declared a dividend of 10 cents per share for the fourth quarter of 2021, calling for an increase of 11% on the previous base quarterly dividend of 9 cents.
Guidance
For 2022, Barrick anticipates attributable gold production in the range of 4.2-4.6 million ounces. AISC is expected in the range of $1,040-$1,120 per ounce and cash costs per ounce are projected in the band of $730-$790 per ounce.
The company also expects copper production in the range of 420-470 million pounds at AISC of $2.70-$3.00 per pound and cost of sales of $2.20-$2.50 per pound.
Capital expenditures are projected between $1,900 million and $2,200 million.
Price Performance
Barrick’s shares have increased 9.4% in the past year compared with a 13.2% rise of the
industry
.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
Zacks Rank & Key Picks
Barrick currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).
Some better-ranked stocks in the basic materials space are
Albemarle Corporation
ALB
,
Nutrien Ltd.
NTR
and
AdvanSix Inc.
ASIX
.
Albemarle, currently sporting a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), has an expected earnings growth rate of 56.2% for the current year. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for ALB’s earnings for the current year has been revised 8.9% upward in the past 60 days. You can see
the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.
Albemarle beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate for earnings in each of the trailing four quarters, the average being 22.1%. ALB has rallied around 73.9% over a year.
Nutrien, sporting a Zacks Rank #1, has a projected earnings growth rate of 55.8% for the current year. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for NTR’s current-year earnings has been revised 13.2% upward in the past 60 days.
Nutrien beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate for earnings in three of the last four quarters, while missing once. It has a trailing four-quarter earnings surprise of roughly 73.5%, on average. NTR has rallied around 35.2% in a year.
AdvanSix has a projected earnings growth rate of 7.4% for the current year. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for ASIX’s current-year earnings has been revised 5.3% upward in the past 60 days.
AdvanSix beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate for earnings in each of the trailing four quarters, the average being 46.9%. ASIX has surged 55.6% over a year. The company carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).
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