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Additional Information
Market: NYSE
Sector: General Mining
EPIC: FCX
Latest Price: 31.81  (-1.12% Descending)
52-week High: 56.30
52-week Low: 29.87
Market Cap: 30,191.40M
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Freeport-McMoRan
www.fcx.com

Freeport-McMoRan is a leading international mining company with headquarters in Phoenix, Arizona. FCX operates a portfolio of operating, expansion and growth projects in the copper industry and is the world’s largest producer of molybdenum.

Full Freeport-McMoRan profile here
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Freeport-McMoRan posts 60% rise in fourth quarter profits, but shares fall

20th Jan 2011, 3:16 pm
Freeport-McMoRan posts 60% rise in fourth quarter profits, but shares fall

Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold (NYSE: FCX) reported Thursday that fourth quarter profit jumped 60% as prices for the two metals soared to all-time highs.

The company, which operates in Africa, Indonesia and North and South America, posted net income attributable to common stock of roughly $1.5 billion, or $3.25 per share, compared to profits of $971 million,  or $2.15 per share, for the prior year quarter. The results trumped analyst earnings expectations of $3.03 per share.

Revenue rose 22% to $5.6 billion from a year earlier. Freeport-McMoRan sold 941 million pounds of copper, 590 thousand ounces of gold and 17 million pounds of molybdenum during the fourth quarter.

Gold sales increased 7% from the prior year quarter, while copper sales slipped 5%, reflecting lower than anticipated sales in North America. However, the company's average price for copper climbed more than 30% to $4.18 per pound, while its average sales price went up to $1,398 per ounce from $1,115.

For 2011, the company expects to sell 3.85 billion pounds of copper, 1.4 million ounces of gold and 70 million pounds of molybdenum.

During the fourth quarter, Freeport completed its $50 million project to increase throughput at the existing Cerro Verde concentrator in Peru, which is expected to result in incremental annual production of approximately 30 million pounds of copper, the company said.

Freeport also boosted its exploration spending for 2011, in an effort to expand reserves, to an estimated $200 million from $113 million a year earlier. The company currently expects capital expenditures to approximate $2.5 billion for the year, including $1.3 billion for major projects.

At quarter-end, the company had total debt of $4.8 billion and cash of roughly $3.7 billion.

Freeport-McMoRan fell 3.9% on Thursday morning to trade at $110.65 as of 10:13am EST.

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