The Alumina Limited (ASX: AWC) share price is flat this morning following the release of the ASX miner's full-year FY19 results.
What did Alumina announce?
Alumina reported a statutory net profit after tax of US$214 million for the full-year to 31 December 2019, which was a massive 66% decline on the prior year.
The company also recorded free cash flow for the year of US$420 million and declared a final, fully franked dividend of 3.6 US cents per share. This was down 74% from the 14.1 US cents declared at the end of FY18 and brings total dividends for the period to 8 US cents.
Net cash inflows for Alcoa World Alumina & Chemicals (AWAC) were reported to be US$730.7 million for FY2019, which represented a 60% decrease from the US$1,804.4 million recorded in FY18.
Meanwhile, earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) for AWAC came in at US$1,260.7 million, a massive 52% decrease from US$2,630.1 million achieved in FY18.
Margin for Alumina's refineries in AWAC came in at US$126 per tonne, which was a decrease of US$95 per tonne, while its cash cost per tonne of alumina produced improved by 7% per tonne during the period.
Management commentary
Commenting on the FY19 results, Alumina's Chief Executive Officer, Mike Ferraro, said:
"This is a strong result, reflecting the Company's ability to generate impressive returns for shareholders through the cycle. AWAC's full-year alumina production was a record for the current portfolio and the cash cost of production fell by 7%. The final dividend continues to deliver excellent returns to shareholders."
Market trends and outlook
The company commented that Alumina prices had fallen during 2019, however, they had stabilised at around $280 per tonne early in 2020. Prices then rebounded slightly to $300 per tonne last week amid market tightening.
Alumina expects that demand for Aluminium will grow in 2020 as the trade friction that it has been experiencing subsides. The company feels that this trend should contribute to a more balanced alumina market and it also anticipates that China will absorb any surplus from the rest of world production.
