Fortuna Silver Mines Inc. FSM produced 110,820 gold equivalent ounces in the third quarter of 2024, a 13.9% decrease from the year-ago quarter. This includes a gold production of 91,251 ounces and a silver production of 816,187 ounces. Gold output marked a 3.8% year-over-year fall, whereas silver production was down 51.4%.
FSM’s Mine Performances in Q3
FSM currently has five operating mines in its portfolio. The Séguéla mine, located in Côte d´Ivoire, contributed 34,998 ounces of gold in the third quarter of 2024. Its total production for the third quarter of 2023 was 31,498 ounces. The mine is expected to produce gold of 126,000-138,000 ounces in 2024.
The Yaramoko Mine in Burkina Faso produced 28,006 ounces of gold, down 18% year over year. FSM expects Yaramoko’s gold production between 105,000 and 119,000 ounces for 2024.
The third-quarter gold production at the Lindero mine in Argentina was 24,345 ounces, up 16.3% year over year. The 2024 guidance for the mine is pegged at 93,000-105,000 ounces of gold.
The San Jose mine in Mexico produced 510,741 ounces of silver and 3,771 ounces of gold. Silver production was down 62.8% year over year, whereas gold production declined 54%. The company expects gold production for 2024 between 19,000 and 23,000 ounces, whereas silver production is forecast at 3.1-3.6 million ounces.
The Caylloma mine in Peru produced 305,446 ounces of silver, down 0.9% year over year. Gold output was 131 ounces compared with 149 ounces in the third quarter of 2023. The mine’s 2024 silver production is targeted between 0.9 million and 1.1 million ounces.
Zinc production was 12.8 million pounds and lead production was 13 million pounds.
Fortuna Silver Maintains 2024 Guidance
FSM reported gold and silver production of 273,645 ounces and 2.9 million ounces, respectively, in the first nine months of 2024, translating to 339,933 ounces of gold equivalent (including lead and zinc by-products).
Gold equivalent production guidance for 2024 is maintained between 457,000 and 497,000 ounces. The range indicates a year-over-year increase of 1-10%.
The gold production guidance is pegged at 343,000-385,000 ounces, which indicates growth of 5-18% from the 2023 reported level. The silver production guidance is 4-4.7 million ounces for 2024, which suggests a year-over-year decline of 21-32%.
FSM’s Peer Performance in Q3
Endeavour Silver Corporation EXK produced 1.6 million silver equivalent ounces in the third quarter of 2024, a 14% decline from the year-ago quarter due to reduced silver production at its mines, which offset higher gold output.
Consolidated silver production fell 24% year over year to 874,717 million ounces. This was due to a reduced operating capacity at Guanaceví after the trunnion breakdown in August.
Endeavour Silver, however, witnessed a 2% year-over-year improvement in gold production to 9,290 ounces . The rise was driven by higher gold grades mined at Guanaceví and Bolañitos, as well as increased gold content in third-party feed processed at Guanaceví.
Fortuna Silver’s Share Price Outperforms Industry
Shares of Fortuna Silver have gained 61% in the past year compared with the industry’s 7.3% growth.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
FSM’s Zacks Rank & Stocks to Consider
The company currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).
Some better-ranked stocks from the basic materials space are Carpenter Technology Corporation CRS and Eldorado Gold Corporation EGO. CRS and EGO sport a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) at present.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Carpenter Technology’s fiscal 2025 earnings is pegged at $6.09 per share. The consensus estimate for 2025 earnings has moved 7% north in the past 60 days. It has an average trailing four-quarter earnings surprise of 15.9%. CRS shares have gained 127.1% in a year.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Eldorado Gold’s 2024 earnings is pegged at $1.32 per share. The consensus estimate for 2024 earnings has moved 16% north in the past 60 days. It has an average trailing four-quarter earnings surprise of 430%. EGO shares have gained 82.9% in a year.
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