The New Hope Corporation Ltd (ASX: NHC) share price is rising on Tuesday.
In morning trade, the coal miner's shares are up almost 2% to $6.28 following the release of its FY 2023 results.
New Hope share price higher on record FY 2023 results
- Gross revenue up 6% to a record of $2,648.8 million
- Underlying earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortisation (EBITDA) up 11% to $1,746.6 million
- Net profit after tax up 10.6% to $1,087.4 million
- Fully franked final dividend of 21 cents per share
- Special dividend of 9 cents per share
What happened in FY 2023?
For the 12 months ended 31 July, New Hope reported a 6% increase in gross revenue to a record of $2,648.8 million. This was underpinned by record-high prices in the first half of the year, which offset lower sales volumes as a result of adverse weather impacts.
Things were even better for its earnings, with both EBITDA and net profit coming in at record levels. EBITDA increased 11% to $1,746.6 million and net profit after tax rose 10.6% to $1,087.4 million.
New Hope's CEO, Rob Bishop, notes that this strong performance and its robust balance sheet have allowed the miner to pay big dividends again. He said:
This outstanding result has enabled the Company to reward shareholders with a final fully franked dividend of 21 cents per ordinary share, and a special fully franked dividend of 9 cents per ordinary share.
Based on where the New Hope share price closed yesterday's session, these dividends represent a fully franked 4.9% dividend yield.
For FY 2023, this means New Hope's dividends totalled 70 cents per share.
Management commentary
Bishop was pleased with New Hope's performance in FY 2023 and appears positive on the company's outlook. He said:
Exceptional performance across the business throughout FY23 enabled our team to capitalise on the market conditions, finishing the year with $730.7 million cash at bank, no debt following the convertible note repurchase and a net asset position of $2,525.3 million.
We believe high quality, low emission Australian thermal coal is critical to supporting the transition to a decarbonised economy. Our customers rely on our coal to produce secure, essential energy which supports their standards of living and economic development opportunities. "The Company's long-term strategy is to safely, responsibly and efficiently operate our low-cost, long-life assets throughout the energy transition, with a focus on disciplined capital management, providing valuable returns to our shareholders.
The New Hope share price is up 14% over the last 12 months.
