Southern Copper Corporation delivered a solid QQ4 2024 with a resilient revenue base and robust profitability metrics, underscored by a high gross margin and strong cash-generation profile. The company posted revenue of $2.7843 billion, up 21.3% year over year (YoY) while posting a QoQ decline of 5.0% as seasonal and logistics factors influenced shipments in the quarter. Gross profit reached $1.3418 billion, representing a margin of 48.19%, with EBITDA of $1.5460 billion and an EBITDA margin of 55.5%, reflecting the leverage of a large, integrated mining operation and favorable commodity mix. Net income of $0.794 billion contributed to a healthy net margin of 28.5% and an EPS of $1.01, marking a strong YoY improvement of approximately 74% in earnings per share, despite a modest QoQ step-down in profitability.
The balance sheet remains in a solid liquidity position. Net cash provided by operating activities stood at $1.3605 billion, with free cash flow of $1.1252 billion after capital expenditures of $235.3 million. The company paid dividends totaling $549.9 million in the period, highlighting an attractive cash-return profile for shareholders. Cash and cash equivalents plus short-term investments totaled approximately $3.503 billion, while total debt was roughly $6.9977 billion with net debt of about $3.7396 billion, yielding a comfortable interest coverage of about 15x. These metrics support a defensive balance sheet posture in a commodity cycle characterized by copper price volatility.
From a market perspective, Southern Copper benefits from its integrated asset base across Peru and Mexico, secular demand for copper linked to infrastructure and decarbonization, and relatively high operating efficiency (gross margins near 48%, solid operating margins near 47%). The firm’s leverage and high cash generation position it to fund ongoing maintenance and opportunistic investments while returning capital to shareholders. Risks include copper price volatility, FX exposure (MXN, PEN), regulatory and environmental risk in the jurisdictions in which it operates, and the cyclical nature of commodity markets. Given the current quarter and trailing results, the outlook remains supportive provided copper prices maintain a constructive baseline and operational performance remains disciplined.