Sumitomo Metal Mining (5713) Q4 2024 earnings summary

Executive summary

• FY results: net sales rose 1.6% to ¥1,445,388m, while profit before tax fell 58.3% to ¥95,795m and profit attributable to owners fell 63.5% to ¥58,601m.

• Lower metal prices, reduced prior-year FX gains and cost pressures weighed on earnings; QB2 and Côté ramp-ups, plus higher battery-material sales, support the growth outlook.

Financial highlights

• Net sales were ¥1,445,388m, gross profit ¥166,133m, profit before tax ¥95,795m and profit ¥60,803m; profit attributable to owners was ¥58,601m, with EPS of ¥213.28.

• Profit before tax declined ¥134.1bn YoY; lower nickel and cobalt prices, reduced prior-year FX gains, inflation-driven unit-cost pressure, lower production and sales, and subsidiary-transfer expenses contributed.

• Total comprehensive income was ¥209,335m, down 27.1% YoY; other comprehensive income was ¥148,532m, including ¥63,162m from financial assets measured at fair value through OCI.

Outlook and guidance

• Next-year forecast: net sales ¥1,492bn, gross profit ¥136bn, profit before tax ¥91bn, profit ¥62bn and profit attributable to owners ¥56bn; forecast EPS is ¥203.81.

• Forecast assumptions: copper $9,000/t, nickel $8.00/lb, gold $2,000/oz and ¥150/$; actual averages were $8,362/t, $8.68/lb, $1,989/oz and ¥144.63/$.

• QB2 copper production forecast is at least 207,000 tonnes and Côté gold production 6.9 tonnes on a full-JV basis; 2025 targets are ~280,000 tonnes of QB2 copper and up to 15 tonnes of Côté gold annually.

• Next-year dividend forecast is ¥99/share, comprising ¥49 interim and ¥50 year-end; policy targets a consolidated payout ratio of at least 35% in principle and DOE of at least 1.5%.