(Kitco News) - The precious metal mining sector continues to fire on all cylinders as companies enjoy significant margins after an unprecedented rally in gold prices.
Canada’s largest gold miner is the latest company to release its earnings, reporting record growth in 2024.
On Thursday, after the North American equity market closed, Agnico Eagle (NYSE: AEM, TSX: AEM) reported record annual gold production and free cash flow. The company reported adjusted net income of $1.26 per share, significantly beating expectations. At the same time, the company said that its free cash flow hit a new record of more than $2 billion.
Looking at production data, the company said that it produced 3.465 million ounces of gold at all-in-sustaining costs (AISC) of $1,239 per ounce. The company noted that its gold production was slightly above the midpoint of its 2024 guidance range of 3.35 million to 3.55 million ounces.
"I'm pleased to report another year of record operational and financial performance, achieving our production and cost guidance. We are very proud of our team's work to control costs, which, coupled with a favourable gold price environment, has resulted in record operating margins. This success, along with capital discipline, has enabled us to reduce net debt by $1.3 billion since the beginning of the year and return close to $1.0 billion dollars to our shareholders," said Ammar Al-Joundi, Agnico Eagle's President and Chief Executive Officer. "Looking ahead, we will remain laser-focused on cost control and capital discipline. Our updated three-year production guidance forecasts stable production at peer-leading costs. Our exploration program continues to yield positive results, replacing mineral reserves and increasing our mineral resource base. Given our solid track record of execution, we believe we are well positioned to continue to generate strong returns while we advance our pipeline projects and build the foundations for profitable future growth," added Mr. Al-Joundi.
The company is looking to put its large cash reserves to work as it declared a quarterly dividend of $0.40 per share. Agnico is also planning to spend $20 million to buy back 248,700 shares this year.
Looking ahead, the company expects to produce between 3.3 million and 3.5 million gold ounces annually for the next three years.
“While the 2025 and 2026 gold production guidance is slightly lower than the prior three-year guidance issued on February 15, 2024, the outlook for 2027 has improved as expected contributions in 2027 from East Gouldie at Canadian Malartic, LaRonde, and Macassa are expected to offset lower gold grade sequences at Detour Lake and a decline in production at Meadowbank,” the company said.
