Shares of mining giant Rio Tinto (NYSE:RIO) are trending lower today after the company announced its production results for the fourth quarter. In Q4, Pilbara iron ore production dropped by 2%, and titanium dioxide slag production declined by 15% year-over-year. Conversely, production of bauxite, aluminium, and copper rose by 15%, 8%, and 5%, respectively.
For the full year, aluminium production rose by 9% to 3,272 kt, and copper production increased by 2% to 620 kt. While bauxite production remained flat at 54.6 Mt, Pilbara iron ore output ticked higher by 2% to 331.5 Mt. In addition, Rio Tinto’s Kitimat aluminium smelter has returned to full capacity.
The company expects Pilbara iron ore shipments to hover in the range of 323-338 mt for 2024. Separately, Rio Tinto is scheduled to report its fourth-quarter results on February 21. Analysts expect the company to post an EPS of $3.81 on revenue of $28.14 billion for the quarter. In the comparable year-ago period, RIO’s EPS of $5.69 had comfortably outperformed estimates of $3.91.
Is RIO a Good Investment?
Overall, the Street has a Strong Buy consensus rating on Rio Tinto, and the average RIO price target of $79.75 implies a modest 13.6% potential upside in the stock. That’s after a nearly 6% decline in the company’s share price so far this year.
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