Vale on track to hit top end of iron ore guidance, CEO says
Vale’s (NYSE: VALE) CEO said on Friday that he is confident the company will meet the top end of its guidance for iron ore production in 2024, which stands between 310 million and 320 million tonnes.
Eduardo Bartolomeo’s remarks come after the miner’s net profit tripled in the second quarter from a year earlier, with iron ore sales up 7%.
On Thursday, the miner announced its second-quarter net profit soared to $2.77 billion.
Bartolomeo, who will leave his role in December, said Vale is making progress on the stability of its iron ore production and believes that costs are also expected to fall within expectations for this year.
According to the executive, costs were “seasonally higher in the second quarter, but on track to reach our guidance for the year, especially as our product mix and fixed cost dilution improves in the second half.”
Analysts polled by LSEG were expecting a net profit of $1.7 billion. The result was also 65% higher than in the first quarter when net profit totaled $1.68 billion.
The company’s adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) totaled $3.99 billion in April-June, slightly below an analyst estimate of $4.06 billion.
Net operating revenue rose 3% to $9.9 billion.
Shares of Vale rose 0.7% by 11:40 p.m. EDT. The miner has a market capitalization of $46.6 billion.
(With files from Reuters)