Credit: Shutterstock photoRoyal Gold, Inc. 's RGLD adjusted earnings per share of 36 cents per share in second-quarter fiscal 2019 (ended Dec 31, 2018) beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate by a penny. The company had reported a loss per share of 23 cents in the prior-year quarter.
Revenues of $97.6 million in the quarter declined about 14.6% from $114.3 million reported in the year-ago quarter. Revenues declined due to lower average gold, silver and copper prices as well as a drop in overall sales and production.
Royal Gold, Inc. Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise
Royal Gold, Inc. Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise | Royal Gold, Inc. Quote
Operational Highlights
Royal Gold's volume of 79,600 GEOs (Gold Equivalent Ounces) declined 11.3% from the prior-year quarter. Average gold price declined 3.8% to $1,226 per ounce from the year-ago quarter.
The company reported costs of sales of $18.2 million in the reported quarter, down from the year-ago quarter $19.8 million. General and administrative expenses contracted to $7.4 million, compared with $9.6 million a year ago. Operating profit declined 23% year over year to $31 million.
Financial Position
Net cash provided by operating activities was around $59 million in second-quarter 2019 compared with $76 million in the prior-year quarter. The company ended the quarter with roughly $157 million cash in hand, up from $89 million at fiscal 2018-end. As of the quarter-end, the company's total debt was $359 million, up from $351 million at fiscal 2018-end. The company has paid dividends worth $16.4 million during the quarter.
In the past year, Royal Gold's stock has gained 7% outperforming the industry 's gain of 1.5%.
Zacks Rank & Stocks to Consider
Royal Gold carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) currently.
A few better-ranked stocks in the basic materials space include Rio Tinto plc RIO , Cameco Corporation CCJ and Israel Chemicals Ltd ICL . While Rio Tinto currently sports a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), Cameco and Israel Chemicals carry a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). You can see the complete list of today's Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.
Rio Tinto has an expected earnings growth rate of 5.1% for 2019. The company's shares have moved up 8.4% in the past year.
Cameco has an expected earnings growth rate of 18.5% for 2019. Its shares have surged 42.1% in a year's time.
Israel Chemicals has an expected earnings growth rate of 11.1% for 2019. Its shares have rallied 43.7% in a year's time.
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The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.
The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.
