Liontown swung to a maiden annual net profit and said its underlying earnings surged, as the Australian lithium miner benefited from improved prices of the battery metal.
Perth-based Liontown said it made a net profit of 93 million Australian dollars, equivalent to US$66.6 million, for the 12 months through June.
Liontown reported an annual net loss of A$193.3 million a year ago.
Management said on Monday that the profit improvement was mainly driven by a gross profit from operations of A$94 million and the recognition of a A$113 million deferred tax asset for tax losses carried forward from prior years.
Liontown said underlying earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization, or Ebitda, totaled A$147 million. That compares to underlying Ebitda of A$20 million a year ago.
Analysts expected a net loss of A$78.4 million and underlying Ebitda of A$206.5 million for fiscal 2026, according to consensus estimates collated by Visible Alpha.
Liontown is benefiting from a rise in prices for the lithium-rich spodumene concentrate it produces at its Kathleen Valley mine in Western Australia. Realized prices more than doubled through fiscal 2026.
Production also increased by 33% on a year earlier.
That more than offset an increase in so-called unit operating costs, which increased by 23% year over year, in part because of higher diesel prices.
"The market handed us two very different halves in the year. Prices were weak early, so we kept costs tight and preserved cash. When the market turned, we backed our own read of it and we are now reinvesting," Chief Executive Tony Ottaviano said.
Liontown reaffirmed production, cost and capital expenditure guidance for fiscal 2027. The miner has said it is planning for fiscal 2027 to be a year of investment, with a final decision on an expansion of the Kathleen Valley mine expected by the end of the first quarter.
Comments