By Rhiannon Hoyle

 

Rio Tinto PLC (RIO.LN), the world's second-biggest mining company by value, reported first-half earnings on Thursday. Here's what we watched.

 

UNDERLYING PROFIT FORECAST: Rio Tinto reported first-half underlying earnings, stripping out one-time charges, of US$4.93 billion, up 12% on year, although slightly below the US$5.16 billion median forecast from a WSJ poll of seven analysts.

DIVIDEND FORECAST: Rio Tinto said it would pay an interim dividend of US$1.51 a share, versus the US$1.76 a share median forecast from the same poll.

REVENUE FORECAST: First-half revenue totaled US$20.72 billion, against a forecast of roughly US$22.19 billion.

 

WHAT WE WATCHED:

--OYU TOLGOI: Rio Tinto wrote down the value of its Oyu Tolgoi copper operation in Mongolia by roughly US$800 million after last month saying it will likely take longer and at higher cost to finish an underground mine at the site.

--CAPITAL RETURNS: Rio Tinto said it would pay a special dividend of US$0.61 a share, worth a total US$1 billion. Investors were anticipating additional returns on top of the ordinary dividend thanks to strong prices for iron ore, the miner's main product.

 

Write to Rhiannon Hoyle at rhiannon.hoyle@wsj.com

 

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

August 01, 2019 03:55 ET (07:55 GMT)

Copyright (c) 2019 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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