Potash Archives - Page 26 of 61

Oil prices climbed this week as U.S. inventories tightened and the risk of Iran reaching a new deal and bringing extra crude online decreased.

Friday, July 30th, 2021

Crude prices drew hefty support this week from U.S. inventory dynamics, with commercial stocks falling to their lowest since January 2020 and indications that the tightening is set to continue. Concurrently, the markets have seemingly got accustomed to the idea that there will not be any Iranian cliff-hanger as President-elect Raisi is to be sworn into office next week, mitigating erstwhile concerns that Tehran might flood the market with incremental barrels. COVID headwinds persist, however, as several European countries see rising Delta variant cases.

EU Fails to Replenish Gas Storage. European countries are struggling to replenish their gas reserves amid exorbitantly high LNG prices and limited availability of pipeline supplies, with total EU gas reserves standing at a mere 616 TWh, equivalent to some 63 billion cubic meters, the lowest level since 2015.

TotalEnergies Buys into Singapore EV Charging. Teaming up with another French firm Bolloré, TotalEnergies (NYSE:TTE) agreed to buy Singapore’s leading electric vehicle charging network (accounting for 85% of the city-state’s charge points), acquiring Blue Charge for an undisclosed sum. TotalEnergies seeks to increase its charge point tally tenfold to 150,000 by 2025.

Gasoline market backwardation. Whilst gasoline cracks remain the best-performing segment of most European refiners’ slate, the derivatives market indicates that the global gasoline balance is tightening as the Eurobob oxy M1-M2 swap surged past the $20 per metric ton earlier this week, the widest in almost two weeks.

London court to reopen $7 billion BHP dam lawsuit. The London Court of Appeal reopened a lawsuit against the Anglo-Australian mining firm BHP (NYSE:BHP) over the 2015 Mariana dam disaster, Brazil’s worst-ever environmental disaster, allowing a 200 000-strong claimant group to appeal against a lower court decision.

ADNOC to Ease October 2021 production cuts. The UAE state oil company ADNOC informed its term buyers that it would ease its export nomination cuts for October 2021, bringing back 10 percentage points worth of output compared to September, a clear indication that the Emirates remains earnest in its production ramp-up drive.

European Majors Leave Venezuela. France’s TotalEnergies (NYSE:TTE) and Norway’s Equinor (NYSE:EQNR) have quit their Petrocedeño joint venture, transferring their stakes to a subsidiary of PDVSA. The JV manages the Juni oil field in the Orinoco Belt and a 180kbpd heavy crude upgrader – this was used by both companies, arguing that developing the heavy barrels is incompatible with their low-carbon strategies.

UK Seeks to Remove China from Nuclear Projects. UK media report that China’s national nuclear firm CGN might be blocked from building new infrastructure on the British Islands, triggered by concerns that increased Chinese participation in Britain’s energy infrastructure could be detrimental to the nation’s overall energy security.

Rio Tinto Starts $2.4 Billion Serbia Lithium Project. Rio Tinto (NYSE:RIO) brought forward a much-anticipated investment decision on the project, stating that it would already launch construction next year with a commissioning aim of 2026-2027. Jadar in Serbia is bound to become Europe’s largest lithium supply source.

Biden Administration to Revise Toxic Coal Wastewater Rule. The White House will revise a Trump-era rule that allowed US coal-fired plants to delay installing equipment that could prevent lead, selenium, or other pollutants seeping into rivers and streams, Reuters reports. The US government intends to finalize the new set of rules by 2024.

Shell Buys Inspire Energy as it Seeks to Gain Green Credentials. Shell (NYSE:RDS) purchased the US-based renewable energy retailer Inspire Energy, Reuters reports, amidst increasing domestic pressure to speed up its decarbonization efforts.

Spanish High Court Clears Repsol CEO. Antonio Brufau, the CEO of Spanish oil firm Repsol (BME:REP) was cleared of allegations that he had spied on market competitors to block a takeover bid by PEMEX and its partner. The court found no evidence of the chairman’s direct involvement in the spying case, triggering a more than 2% hike in Repsol stocks.

Wheat Rises on Inclement Weather. Wheat futures at the Chicago BOT rose to a 2-month high as droughts in the US Midwest and freezing temperatures in Brazil have sapped global spring wheat yields. The Wv1 CBOT contract surpassed the $7 per bushel threshold, whilst the Paris December contract rose beyond €220 per ton (equivalent to $7.1 per bushel).

Indonesia Sets 2060 Net Zero Objective. Indonesia announced it would seek to achieve net carbon neutrality by 2060 or sooner, seeing its aggregate greenhouse gas emissions peak in 2030. Interestingly, it is oil that will be phased out the swiftest in the upcoming future, with abundant coal retaining its importance in power generation well into mid-century.

NOVATEK Revisits Obsky LNG. The Russian LNG-focused producer abandoned its 5mtpa Obsky LNG project and revamped it instead into a gas petrochemicals complex that would produce ammonia and hydrogen from natural gas. NOVATEK initially intended to use its proprietary Arctic Cascade liquefaction technology for the project.

Offshore Suriname Production Gets Real. Two appraisal drilling programs carried out by operator TotalEnergies (NYSE:TTE) in Suriname’s Block 58 confirmed net black oil pays in both the Sapakara and Kwaskwasi prospects, marking another important step towards oil commercialization. This year will still see another appraisal well at the Bonboni field and a flow test of Sapakara.

By Tom Kool for Oilprice.com

More Top Reads From Oilprice.com:

Read this article on OilPrice.com

By Ernest Scheyder

(Reuters) – Two Native American tribes have formally asked a U.S. federal court to prevent Lithium Americas Corp from excavating its Thacker Pass lithium mine site in Nevada, which they say contains their ancestors' bones and should not be disturbed.

The Reno-Sparks Indian Colony and Atsa koodakuh wyh Nuwu/People of Red Mountain filed their preliminary injunction request late Thursday, a filing that had been expected. The tribes say federal regulators did not adequately consult with them before approving the project in January.

The project would become one of the largest U.S. producers of the electric vehicle battery metal. First, though, Lithium Americas needs to conduct archaeological digging at the site in order to catalog historical artifacts. It has not yet obtained necessary permits from federal officials to do so.

The tribes' injunction request essentially asks the court to prevent that archaeological digging even if the company obtains those permits.

"The excavators and shovels could harm the very human remains the archaeologists would be looking for," the tribes said in the filing.

Chief Judge Miranda Du of the U.S. District Court for Nevada asked for responses from Lithium Americas and the U.S. Bureau of Land Management – which manages the federal land atop the lithium deposit – by August 12.

Vancouver-based Lithium Americas and the BLM declined to comment on the filing.

Du denied a similar injunction request last week from environmentalists who argued the project could harm wildlife. Earlier this week, though, the judge allowed the tribes to join the lawsuit to argue their concerns the project could harm historical sites.

Beyond the injunction requests, Du is considering whether former President Donald Trump's administration erred when it approved the entire project in January. That ruling is expected by early 2022.

(Reporting by Ernest Scheyder; Editing by David Gregorio)

While the proven Zacks Rank places an emphasis on earnings estimates and estimate revisions to find strong stocks, we also know that investors tend to develop their own individual strategies. With this in mind, we are always looking at value, growth, and momentum trends to discover great companies.

Considering these trends, value investing is clearly one of the most preferred ways to find strong stocks in any type of market. Value investors use tried-and-true metrics and fundamental analysis to find companies that they believe are undervalued at their current share price levels.

Zacks has developed the innovative Style Scores system to highlight stocks with specific traits. For example, value investors will be interested in stocks with great grades in the "Value" category. When paired with a high Zacks Rank, "A" grades in the Value category are among the strongest value stocks on the market today.

Rio Tinto (RIO) is a stock many investors are watching right now. RIO is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy), as well as a Value grade of A. The stock is trading with a P/E ratio of 5.38, which compares to its industry's average of 7.22. Over the past year, RIO's Forward P/E has been as high as 11.49 and as low as 5.02, with a median of 7.89.

Another valuation metric that we should highlight is RIO's P/B ratio of 1.99. The P/B ratio is used to compare a stock's market value with its book value, which is defined as total assets minus total liabilities. This stock's P/B looks solid versus its industry's average P/B of 3.46. Over the past year, RIO's P/B has been as high as 2.28 and as low as 1.58, with a median of 1.94.

Value investors will likely look at more than just these metrics, but the above data helps show that Rio Tinto is likely undervalued currently. And when considering the strength of its earnings outlook, RIO sticks out at as one of the market's strongest value stocks.

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(Bloomberg) — Sanjeev Gupta has paid $25 million to Rio Tinto Group to settle a long-running dispute over the final payment for an aluminum smelter he bought from the mining giant in 2018.

The deal was disclosed in the financial accounts of one of Gupta’s holding companies for the smelter, which stated that a settlement agreement had been signed to close all claims and counterclaims between the two sides on payment of $25 million by the unit that operates the plant. The payment took place on April 30, according to the accounts.

The settlement shows how buoyant steel and aluminum markets are helping Gupta, even as he battles to keep hold of his business empire after the collapse of his largest lender, Greensill Capital. His GFG Alliance is also being investigated by the U.K.’s Serious Fraud Office over alleged fraud and money laundering.

The dispute with Rio dates back to the miner’s sale of the Dunkirk smelter in France — Europe’s largest aluminum plant — to Gupta for $500 million in 2018. Rio initiated an arbitration process after Gupta’s group failed to make a final payment after the deal was completed. Rio had been seeking about $50 million, the Financial Times reported in 2019.

The Dunkirk smelter is now the focus of an acrimonious battle between Gupta and one of his creditors, U.S. private equity group American Industrial Partners. A holding company for the smelter has been put into administration as AIP seeks to take control of the asset.

However, a blistering rally in aluminum prices is lifting the GFG’s profits, giving Gupta more options as he seeks new backers. He has already agreed a deal with Glencore Plc to refinance the aluminum business.

Stronger Year

The French group of companies that owns the Dunkirk smelter had earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization of $79 million in 2020, compared with $88 million in 2019, according to the accounts. However, this year’s earnings and operational cash flows were predicted to be “much stronger” thanks to higher aluminum prices, according to the filing.

Spokespeople for Gupta’s GFG Alliance and Rio declined to comment.

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(Compares estimates, adds all-in sustaining costs, background)

July 29 (Reuters) – Canadian miner Turquoise Hill Resources Ltd on Thursday beat estimates for second-quarter profit, bolstered by a strong output from the Oyu Tolgoi mine in Mongolia and higher prices of copper and gold.

Prices of the red metal hit a record high in May, boosted by demand from electric-vehicle makers and other clean-energy investments. Bullion prices also rose in the second quarter as a weak dollar and pandemic-related uncertainties lifted its safe-haven appeal.

Turquoise Hill's copper production from Oyu Tolgoi stood at 36,735 tonnes in the quarter, compared with 36,495 ounces last year. Its gold output more than tripled to 113,054 ounces.

Oyu Tolgoi, one of the world's largest copper-gold-silver mines, was at the center of a long-running funding spat between Rio Tinto and Turquoise, before the dispute was put to bed in April.

The Mongolian government holds a 34% stake in the Oyu Tolgoi project with Rio's majority-owned Turquoise owning the rest.

Turquoise Hill's all-in sustaining costs fell 32% to $1.48 per pound of copper produced in the quarter.

Its income attributable to the owners of the company was $96.9 million, or 48 cents per share, for the three months ended June 30, compared with $72.6 million, or 36 cents per share, a year earlier.

Analysts on average were expecting a profit of 34 cents per share, according to Refinitiv IBES.

(Reporting by Rithika Krishna in Bengaluru; Editing by Devika Syamnath)

(Bloomberg) — Sacred sites, endangered sawfish and mythical rainbow serpents are the latest challenges confronting commodities powerhouse Australia as the nation’s top mining companies meet for their biggest annual conference.

Since the destruction last year by Rio Tinto Group of a 46,000-year-old Aboriginal rock shelter at Juukan Gorge, the industry has been scrambling to deal with a backlash over heritage protection and environmental issues. A national enquiry into the incident and new laws being drafted by the Western Australia government could have an impact on some A$18 billion ($13 billion) in projects planned by mining giants operating in the Pilbara, the nation’s iron-ore heartland, as well as other resources projects.

The industry, which gathers on Monday for the three-day Diggers and Dealers conference on the edge of a huge gold mine in Kalgoorlie, Western Australia, is already facing the threat of increasing restrictions on emissions, as well as a political spat with China, its biggest buyer. Now, Aboriginal communities are fighting for a stronger role to protect their culture from resources extraction and agriculture.

“The new legislation will put Aboriginal people at the center of decision making,” the Western Australia government said in an emailed statement. “One of the primary objectives of the bill is to ensure that Aboriginal people have custodianship over their heritage.”

The proposed new law will seek to strike a balance between giving indigenous people a stronger voice, without impeding growth in a resources industry estimated to have delivered a record A$310 billion in export revenue in fiscal 2021. Australia ranks among the top producers of metals from gold to lithium and some investors are concerned that if the rules don’t provide traditional landowners with enough safeguards, it could increase the risk of another damaging incident.

“This is a once in a generation opportunity to get a piece of legislation and not just try and fix it at the edges,” said Mary Delahunty, head of impact at pension fund Hesta, which has about A$60 billion in assets. She said the WA government’s draft proposal does not appear to go far enough in giving indigenous groups a stronger voice.

Traditional landowners agree.

“The current draft won’t prevent another Juukan Gorge,” said Wayne Bergmann, interim chief executive officer of the Kimberley Land Council, which represents Aboriginal landowners in the far north of the state. Bergmann is concerned that, under the proposed legislation, the final decision on whether work can be carried out in an area of cultural significance will still be the responsibility of whichever minister is in power at the time, rather than an independent expert body.

“Fundamentally, the investment community needs to be worried because this places risk on projects,” Bergmann said. The government says it was still drafting the bill, and had already made several revisions based on feedback from stakeholders.

Rio, the world’s biggest iron-ore miner, said it is giving cultural heritage and environmental issues a higher priority in the wake of Juukan Gorge and has set up an indigenous advisory committee to improve its engagement with local communities. The London-based company said in April it had reviewed over 1,300 sites in the Pilbara for their potential impact on cultural heritage, with subsequent additional safeguards resulting in 54 million tons of dry ore being removed from its reserves.

Read: A Miner Blew Up Ancient Human History. An Industry May Pay

The fallout from Juukan Gorge is affecting more than the mining industry. The new legislation will also affect agriculture.

One example is the plight of sawfish, which are under threat from the demands of cattle stations that extract water from the Fitzroy River, one of the last remaining nursery habitats of the critically endangered freshwater sawfish, which can grow up to 7 meters long.

The distinctive rays, with their chainsaw-like snouts, are seen in Aboriginal culture as protectors of the river. The global range of the species has declined by more than 60% since the turn of the century, according to a 2019 study by Murdoch University’s Harry Butler Institute.

The WA government has extended a consultation process on water management plans for the Fitzroy River to the end of August.

The task of lawmakers is complicated by the fact that the new rules need to protect not only historical sites and the environment, but also cultural beliefs.

When iron-ore billionaire Andrew Forrest proposed building weirs on one of his cattle stations to hold water from the Ashburton River, the plan was rejected by the state government because of its potential impact on the rainbow serpent, which Aboriginal culture says resides in the river. Forrest’s legal team is appealing the decision, arguing that the weirs will have minimal impact on the river flow, and the serpent will still be able to move freely.

Night Parrot

Forrest, who has a doctorate in marine ecology, has been a vocal supporter of the Aboriginal community — indigenous people make up around 12% of the Australian-based workforce at his Fortescue Metals Group Ltd. The company vowed to protect the endangered night parrot, which had been feared extinct prior to a 2005 sighting near the group’s Cloudbreak mine in the Pilbara.

Hesta’s Delahunty says landowner groups should have the right to veto projects, which would reassure investors that local community concerns were being taken seriously. “It’s important not just from a reconciliation point of view, but also to the financial outcomes of the company.”

The WA government said it won’t include a right of veto, which would be “a disincentive to agreement making.”

Meanwhile, resources companies are aware that their social license to operate is under closer scrutiny than ever. Rio’s former Chief Executive Officer Jean-Sebastien Jacques and other senior executives stepped down in the wake of the Juukan Gorge incident. Since Jacques’ departure, Rio’s shares have gained around 28% in London as iron-ore prices soared, but the FTSE All-Share Industrial Metals and Mining Index has more than doubled in the same time.

“Australia is watching,” Delahunty said. “The investment community is watching this process, because on our watch we will not have another of these incidents.”

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Edmonton, Alberta–(Newsfile Corp. – July 29, 2021) – Grizzly Discoveries Inc. (TSXV: GZD) (OTCQB: GZDIF) (FSE: G6H) ("Grizzly" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that field crews have completed an initial phase 1 sampling evaluation of high-priority conductivity anomalies in the search for Cobalt (Co), Copper (Cu) and Silver (Ag) mineralization that have been identified at its Robocop Property following analysis of the recent 400 line-km Versatile Time Domain Electromagnetic ("VTEM™") and magnetic survey data (Figure 1 below). Results are pending and once received will be used to plan ground geophysical surveys over the high-priority anomalies. The Robocop Property is 100% owned by Grizzly and is easily road accessible in Southeast British Columbia (the "Property"), near the hamlets of Grasmere and Roosville.

Brian Testo, CEO of Grizzly, commented, "The initial results will provide high-priority drill targets to be drilled during Q3 2021. Historical results have provided high-grade copper, cobalt and silver and we anticipate more results that will enable drill targeting towards the source of multiple anomalies. The Property has significant potential for new copper-cobalt discoveries."

Crews from APEX Geoscience Ltd. conducted a follow-up Phase 1 ground geochemical survey to test a number of high and secondary priority geophysical anomalies identified in the vicinity of the "Discovery Area" (See Figure 2 below) and across the property. The Discovery Area has provided historical anomalous trench and core intersections of up to 0.134% Co, 1.19% Cu and 33.8 grams per tonne (g/t) Ag over 1.23 m. Over the course of the three-week program a total of 588 soil samples and 16 rock samples were collected from across the property (see Figure 2 below). The samples have been submitted for multielement geochemical analysis.

Fig 1. New mineral claims (in white outlines) on a map of calculated time constant TAU values for conductance for S Field (dB/dt) with Cu in rocks & soils.

To view an enhanced version of Fig. 1, please visit:
https://orders.newsfilecorp.com/files/4488/91508_de556fa3a49898d2_002full.jpg

Fig 2. EM anomalies (including high priority anomalies as white stars) on a map of conductance for S Field (dB/dt) with sampling conducted in June 2021.

To view an enhanced version of Fig 2, please visit:
https://orders.newsfilecorp.com/files/4488/91508_de556fa3a49898d2_003full.jpg

A number of high priority targets have been identified with some in close proximity to known Co-Cu-Ag geochemical anomalies identified in historical rocks grab samples, soils and drilling. Figure 2 above shows the locations of the 2021 soil and rock samples collected to date. The samples have been submitted to ALS Chemex in Vancouver for multielement geochemical analysis and results will be released in the coming weeks as they are received. During the course of the field work a couple of new showings of copper mineralization were found in float and outcrop. An example of copper bearing float hosted in sedimentary rocks about 300 m west of the main showings and in the vicinity of high priority VTEM anomalies 15-3 and 16-3 is provided in Figure 3 below.

A Notice of Work land use permit application for drilling a number of the VTEM anomalies has been submitted to the Front Counter BC's Cranbrook Office with anticipated drill testing in the fall, 2021.

The property is hosted within a similar geological setting to the Idaho Cobalt-Copper belt where conductivity (EM) and magnetic surveying techniques have been used previously to successfully guide drilling of prospective targets and assist in making new metal discoveries.

Fig 3. Strong malachite staining on metasiltstone-sandstone float found during the field program in June 2021.

To view an enhanced version of Fig 3, please visit:
https://orders.newsfilecorp.com/files/4488/91508_de556fa3a49898d2_004full.jpg

HIGHLIGHTS FOR THE ROBOCOP PROPERTY

The Robocop Project is comprised of 9,053 acres (3,663 ha) in five mineral claims that are all road accessible, just off Provincial Highway 93 in southeast B.C.
Initial surface trenching in the late 1980's to early 1990's yielded up to 0.06% Co and 1.93% Cu over 6 metres (m) in one trench, and in a separate trench up to 0.146% Co, 1.8% Cu and 5.3 grams per tonne (g/t) Ag over 5 m in sediment-hosted sulphide mineralization within middle Proterozoic Purcell Group rocks (Thomson, 1990).
A total of 15 drill holes in the area between 1990 and 2008 have yielded several intersections of near surface Co-Cu-Ag mineralization with grades of up to 0.134% Co, 1.19% Cu and 33.8 g/t Ag over 1.23 m core length in hole R-1990-5 and 0.14% Co, 0.9% Cu and 2.7 g/t Ag over 3.1 m core length in hole R-1990-6 (Thomson, 1990), along with an intersection of 0.18% Co, 0.28% Cu and 4.1 g/t Ag over 1 m core length in hole R-2008-02 (Pighin, 2009).
All but one of the historical drillholes tested a single target in an area about 500 m by 350 m. The Property is approximately 10 km in length and 3.5 km in width and contains at least four untested anomalous soil +/- rock geochemical targets.
Sediment hosted Co-Cu-Ag mineralization is similar in style, age and host rocks to mineralization at Jervois Mining Ltd.'s Idaho Cobalt project and Hecla's Revett Formation hosted mineralization near Troy, Montana.

The Property has yielded significant historical cobalt, copper and silver results and presents an opportunity to discover battery and electrification metals as the world shifts to electric vehicles, sustainable practices and greener alternatives. The macroeconomic outlook for battery metals such as Co and Cu remains strong with the ongoing shift to electric vehicles. It is estimated that the battery sector accounts for approximately 57% of current Co demand; this is expected to grow over the next five years to 72%, and will require an additional 100,000 tonnes/annum of Cobalt to meet demand.¹

The technical content of this news release and the Company's technical disclosure has been reviewed and approved by Michael B. Dufresne, M. Sc., P. Geol., P.Geo., who is the Qualified Person as defined by National Instrument 43-101 Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects.

ABOUT GRIZZLY DISCOVERIES INC.

Grizzly is a diversified Canadian mineral exploration company with its primary listing on the TSX Venture Exchange, with 93 million shares issued, focused on developing its over 160,000 acres of precious and base metals properties in southeastern British Columbia. Grizzly is run by a highly experienced junior resource sector management team, who have a track record of advancing exploration projects from early exploration stage through to feasibility stage.

On behalf of the Board,

GRIZZLY DISCOVERIES INC.
Brian Testo, CEO, President
Tel: 780 693 2242

For further information, please visit our website at www.grizzlydiscoveries.com or contact:
Chris Beltgens
Corporate Development
Tel: 604 347 9535
Email: cbeltgens@grizzlydiscoveries.com

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Caution concerning forward-looking information

This press release contains "forward-looking information" and "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of applicable securities laws. This information and statements address future activities, events, plans, developments and projections. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, constitute forward-looking statements or forward-looking information. Such forward-looking information and statements are frequently identified by words such as "may," "will," "should," "anticipate," "plan," "expect," "believe," "estimate," "intend" and similar terminology, and reflect assumptions, estimates, opinions and analysis made by management of Grizzly in light of its experience, current conditions, expectations of future developments and other factors which it believes to be reasonable and relevant. Forward-looking information and statements involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties that may cause Grizzly's actual results, performance and achievements to differ materially from those expressed or implied by the forward-looking information and statements and accordingly, undue reliance should not be placed thereon.

Risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results to vary include but are not limited to the availability of financing; fluctuations in commodity prices; changes to and compliance with applicable laws and regulations, including environmental laws and obtaining requisite permits; political, economic and other risks; as well as other risks and uncertainties which are more fully described in our annual and quarterly Management's Discussion and Analysis and in other filings made by us with Canadian securities regulatory authorities and available at www.sedar.com. Grizzly disclaims any obligation to update or revise any forward-looking information or statements except as may be required by law.

_____________________

¹ Cobalt's Price Rises Highlight Shift to Battery-Driven Pricing Dynamics, Benchmark Mineral Intelligence, November 19^th, 2021

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/91508

In this article, we discuss the 15 stocks that will double in 2021. If you want to skip our detailed analysis of these stocks, go directly to the 5 Stocks that Will Double In 2021.

The economy of 2020 was closely linked to the COVID-19 pandemic. However, the vaccine rollout at the turn of the year buoyed hopes of a return to normalcy and an accelerated recovery from the virus. Resort companies, construction firms, and even mining stocks registered a dramatic increase in price over the first few months of the year as it appeared that vaccines were effective and the virus spread slowed. In the past few days, the spread of the Delta variant of the virus, resistant to vaccines, has once again raised fears of prolonged lockdowns.

In the midst of this delicately poised situation, investors who learned their lessons from the March 2020 lockdown, have already started looking for new and exciting opportunities in the market that will offer them handsome returns even in the bear market, dumping cyclical stocks in the process. Some of the firms that these investors should take note of as they navigate the changing market dynamics include ViacomCBS Inc. (NASDAQ: VIAC), Zynga Inc. (NASDAQ: ZNGA), and MongoDB, Inc. (NASDAQ: MDB), among others.

Companies working in the technology, biopharma, and ecommerce industries are all expected to weather the impact of the coronavirus lockdown and perform better than expected if the economy does fully reopen. Some of these companies, most of which beat market expectations on revenue and earnings per share in the first quarter, are discussed below. It has become very hard for even the market experts to keep up with the ever-evolving world of stocks. Tech-led disruption has been a key factor in this regard.

The entire hedge fund industry is feeling the reverberations of the changing financial landscape. Its reputation has been tarnished in the last decade, during which its hedged returns couldn’t keep up with the unhedged returns of the market indices. On the other hand, Insider Monkey’s research was able to identify in advance a select group of hedge fund holdings that outperformed the S&P 500 ETFs by more than 124 percentage points since March 2017. Between March 2017 and May 29th 2021 our monthly newsletter’s stock picks returned 206.8%, vs. 91.0% for the SPY. Our stock picks outperformed the market by more than 115 percentage points (see the details here). That’s why we believe hedge fund sentiment is an extremely useful indicator that investors should pay attention to. You can subscribe to our free newsletter on our homepage to receive our stories in your inbox.

Image by MayoFi from Pixabay

With this context in mind, here is our list of the 15 stocks that will double in 2021. These rankings are based on the list of firms that finance websites such as Investor Place, The Motley Fool, and Nasdaq think will double this fiscal year. After the initial selection, these companies were then further classified according to analyst ratings and basic business fundamentals. Only firms that have positive ratings or have had their price targets raised by investment advisories in the past few weeks were considered. Special importance was assigned to the recent earnings results of each firm, with those that beat market estimates on earnings per share and revenue featuring heavily. In addition, hedge fund sentiment was also included as a classifier in a bid to improve the reliability of the list. Even after all this exhaustive research, it is pertinent to mention that it is very difficult to predict which stocks will double in a fiscal year. Even market experts with years of academic and field experience find it hard to predict market direction at any given time. However, by filtering out the best of the best based on the metrics available, investors can better focus their energies.

Stocks that Will Double In 2021

15. Allakos Inc. (NASDAQ: ALLK)

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 13

Allakos Inc. (NASDAQ: ALLK) is a clinical stage biopharmaceutical firm. It is placed fifteenth on our list of 15 stocks that will double in 2021. The stock has returned 1.4% to investors over the past year. The firm is based in California. On May 23, investment advisory Jefferies identified the stock as one on its radar as biotech prices picked up and mergers and acquisitions increased following a slow start to the year. The advisory said biotech firms would start to finalize deals in the next three to five months.

On May 15, investment advisory Cowen initiated coverage of Allakos Inc. (NASDAQ: ALLK) stock with an Outperform rating. Joseph Thome, an analyst at the advisory, issued the ratings update.

Out of the hedge funds being tracked by Insider Monkey, San Francisco-based investment firm Redmile Group is a leading shareholder in Allakos Inc. (NASDAQ: ALLK) with 2.4 million shares worth more than $277 million.

Just like ViacomCBS Inc. (NASDAQ: VIAC), Zynga Inc. (NASDAQ: ZNGA), and MongoDB, Inc. (NASDAQ: MDB), Allakos Inc. (NASDAQ: ALLK) is one of the stocks that could double in 2021.

14. Funko, Inc. (NASDAQ: FNKO)

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 14

Funko, Inc. (NASDAQ: FNKO) is ranked fourteenth on our list of 15 stocks that will double in 2021. The company’s shares have returned 230% to investors over the past year. The firm markets pop culture consumer products. It is headquartered in Washington. In earnings results for the first quarter, posted on May 6, the firm reported earnings per share of $0.24, beating estimates by $0.13. The revenue over the period was more than $189 million, up 38% year-on-year.

On May 13, investment advisory Bank of America upgraded Funko, Inc. (NASDAQ: FNKO) stock to Buy from Underperform, raising the price target to $30 from $12, noting the firm represented a significant long-term opportunity for investors.

Out of the hedge funds being tracked by Insider Monkey, New York-based investment firm Woodson Capital Management is a leading shareholder in Funko, Inc. (NASDAQ: FNKO) with 3 million shares worth more than $59 million.

13. Paramount Group, Inc. (NYSE: PGRE)

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 17

Paramount Group, Inc. (NYSE: PGRE) stock has returned 34% to investors over the past year. It is placed thirteenth on our list of 15 stocks that will double in 2021. The firm operates a real estate investment trust that deals exclusively in high-class properties in premier business districts. On July 27, the firm posted earnings for the second quarter, reporting FFO of $0.22, beating market estimates by $0.02. The revenue over the period was over $182 million, up more than 6% year-on-year.

On June 25, investment advisory Deutsche Bank kept a Hold rating on Paramount Group, Inc. (NYSE: PGRE) stock but raised the price target to $12 from $11, noting the firm offered potential in the post-pandemic economy.

At the end of the first quarter of 2021, 17 hedge funds in the database of Insider Monkey held stakes worth $135 million in Paramount Group, Inc. (NYSE: PGRE), down from 18 in the preceding quarter worth $68 million.

Alongside ViacomCBS Inc. (NASDAQ: VIAC), Zynga Inc. (NASDAQ: ZNGA), and MongoDB, Inc. (NASDAQ: MDB), Paramount Group, Inc. (NYSE: PGRE) is one of the stocks that could double in 2021.

12. BHP Group (NYSE: BHP)

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 18

BHP Group (NYSE: BHP) is ranked twelfth on our list of 15 stocks that will double in 2021. The stock has offered investors returns exceeding 43% over the course of the past year. The firm is based in Australia and has interests in the natural resources business. On July 21, the firm announced that it had signed a deal with electric carmaker Tesla to provide the latter with the metal nickel that is used in numerous EV products, including batteries. The financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.

On July 8, investment advisory Berenberg upgraded BHP Group (NYSE: BHP) stock to Buy from Hold, raising the price target to 2,700 GBp from 2,200 GBp, noting that the firm had potential upside with regards to final dividend this year.

Out of the hedge funds being tracked by Insider Monkey, Washington-based investment firm Fisher Asset Management is a leading shareholder in BHP Group (NYSE: BHP) with 7.9 million shares worth more than $553 million.

11. Genpact Limited (NYSE: G)

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 23

Genpact Limited (NYSE: G) is a Bermuda-based business process outsourcing firm. It is placed eleventh on our list of 15 stocks that will double in 2021. The company’s shares have offered investors returns exceeding 22% over the course of the past twelve months. On May 10, the firm posted earnings for the first quarter, reporting earnings per share of $0.59, beating market predictions by $0.11. The revenue over the period was $946 million, up more than 2.5% compared to the revenue over the same period last year.

In earnings results for the first quarter, posted on May 10, Genpact Limited (NYSE: G) reported earnings per share of $0.59, beating market predictions by $0.11. The revenue over the period was more than $946 million, up 2.5% year-on-year.

At the end of the first quarter of 2021, 23 hedge funds in the database of Insider Monkey held stakes worth $271 million in Genpact Limited (NYSE: G), down from 31 in the preceding quarter worth $340 million.

In addition to ViacomCBS Inc. (NASDAQ: VIAC), Zynga Inc. (NASDAQ: ZNGA), and MongoDB, Inc. (NASDAQ: MDB), Genpact Limited (NYSE: G) is one of the stocks that could double in 2021.

In its Q3 2020 investor letter, Third Avenue Management, an asset management firm, highlighted a few stocks and Genpact Limited (NYSE: G) was one of them. Here is what the fund said:

“Long-time holding Genpact was sold after the NAV discount narrowed, and due to strong performance, it was no longer a small-cap company. The investment provided handsome returns to Fund shareholders over the years, but given its market cap, valuation, and other opportunities available, selling the position and recycling the capital seemed prudent.”

10. Deciphera Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ: DCPH)

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 23

Deciphera Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ: DCPH) is ranked tenth on our list of 15 stocks that will double in 2021. The firm makes and sells biopharma products and is headquartered in Waltham. On June 30, the firm announced that it had administered the first dose of a new cancer drug to a patient in the early-stage trial of DCC-3116. Earlier in May, the company had posted earnings for the first quarter, comfortably beating market predictions on revenue and earnings per share for the first quarter.

On March 30, investment advisory Credit Suisse initiated coverage of Deciphera Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ: DCPH) stock with an Outperform rating and a price target of $78, appreciating the pipeline assets of the firm that offered great potential.

At the end of the first quarter of 2021, 23 hedge funds in the database of Insider Monkey held stakes worth $511 million in Deciphera Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ: DCPH), down from 36 in the previous quarter worth $673 million.

9. Affimed N.V. (NASDAQ: AFMD)

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 23

Affimed N.V. (NASDAQ: AFMD) is placed ninth on our list of 15 stocks that will double in 2021. The company’s shares have returned 92% to investors in the past twelve months. The firm is a German biopharma company focusing on cancer immunotherapies. On July 1, the firm posted earnings for the first quarter, reporting earnings per share of -€0.01, beating market estimates by €0.09. The revenue over the period was €11.6 million, up more than 120% compared to the revenue over the same period last year and beating estimates by €2.4 million.

On April 12, investment advisory BMO Capital maintained an Outperform rating on Affimed N.V. (NASDAQ: AFMD) stock and raised the price target to $15 from $12, highlighting recent positive results from studies of drugs being developed by the company.

Out of the hedge funds being tracked by Insider Monkey, New York-based investment firm Consonance Capital Management is a leading shareholder in Affimed N.V. (NASDAQ: AFMD) with 6 million shares worth more than $47 million.

Just like ViacomCBS Inc. (NASDAQ: VIAC), Zynga Inc. (NASDAQ: ZNGA), and MongoDB, Inc. (NASDAQ: MDB), Affimed N.V. (NASDAQ: AFMD) is one of the stocks that could double in 2021.

8. Nomad Foods Limited (NYSE: NOMD)

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 25

Nomad Foods Limited (NYSE: NOMD) stock has returned 16% to investors in the past year. It is ranked eighth on our list of 15 stocks that will double in 2021. The company makes and sells frozen foods and is based in the United Kingdom. On May 6, the firm posted earnings for the first quarter, reporting earnings per share of €0.47, beating market estimates by €0.08. The revenue over the period was €707 million, up 2% compared to the revenue over the same period last year and beating estimates by over €5 million.

On March 30, investment advisory Deutsche Bank maintained a Buy rating on Nomad Foods Limited (NYSE: NOMD) stock and raised the price target to $35 from $32, appreciating a decision of the firm to purchase a frozen foods business.

Out of the hedge funds being tracked by Insider Monkey, New York-based investment firm Renaissance Technologies is a leading shareholder in Nomad Foods Limited (NYSE: NOMD) with 4.6 million shares worth more than $128 million.

In its Q4 2020 investor letter, FAM Funds, an asset management firm, highlighted a few stocks and Nomad Foods Limited (NYSE: NOMD) was one of them. Here is what the fund said:

“The proceeds(from a sold equity) were primarily invested into a new idea — Nomad Foods (NOMD), a producer of branded frozen food products in Europe. Product categories include fish, vegetables, and meat substitutes. Management’s plan is to continually improve the brands they control while seeking opportunities to buy and upgrade similar companies. In the past, key members of senior management pursued this strategy at other businesses and created significant returns for shareholders. As COVID-19 rolled across Europe, Nomad became one of the few beneficiaries of the pandemic as consumers stopped visiting restaurants and increasingly ate at home.”

7. TechnipFMC plc (NYSE: FTI)

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 25

TechnipFMC plc (NYSE: FTI) is a United Kingdom-based oil and gas firm. It is placed seventh on our list of 15 stocks that will double in 2021. The company’s shares have offered investors returns exceeding 32% over the course of the past year. On July 21, the firm posted earnings for the second quarter, reporting earnings per share of -$0.06, just missing estimates by $0.05. The revenue over the period was more than $1.6 billion, up over 3% compared to the revenue over the same period last year.

On June 17, investment advisory Cowen reiterated an Outperform rating on TechnipFMC plc (NYSE: FTI) stock and raised the price target to $12 from $11, seeing an upside to orders and estimates for the company in the coming months.

Out of the hedge funds being tracked by Insider Monkey, New York-based investment firm Pzena Investment Management is a leading shareholder in TechnipFMC plc (NYSE: FTI) with 22.9 million shares worth more than $177 million.

Alongside ViacomCBS Inc. (NASDAQ: VIAC), Zynga Inc. (NASDAQ: ZNGA), and MongoDB, Inc. (NASDAQ: MDB), TechnipFMC plc (NYSE: FTI) is one of the stocks that could double in 2021.

In its Q1 2020 investor letter, Antipodes Partners, an asset management firm, highlighted a few stocks and TechnipFMC plc (NYSE: FTI) was one of them. Here is what the fund said:

“We also added to TechnipFMC as its valuation became increasingly attractive. While the near-term outlook for service companies is challenged, Technip will be somewhat protected by its superior backlog and strong balance sheet.”

6. Revolve Group, Inc. (NYSE: RVLV)

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 29

Revolve Group, Inc. (NYSE: RVLV) is ranked sixth on our list of 15 stocks that will double in 2021. The stock has offered investors returns exceeding 324% over the course of the past twelve months. The firm markets fashion apparel online and is based in California. The company posted earnings for the first quarter on May 6, reporting earnings per share of $0.30, beating estimates by $0.17. The revenue over the period was more than $178 million, up 22% year-on-year and beating estimates by $21 million.

On June 29, investment advisory B Riley maintained a Buy rating on Revolve Group, Inc. (NYSE: RVLV) stock and raised the price target to $80 from $58, appreciating the growth of online footwear retailers that was expected to continue in the near future.

At the end of the first quarter of 2021, 29 hedge funds in the database of Insider Monkey held stakes worth $256 million in Revolve Group, Inc. (NYSE: RVLV), up from 24 in the preceding quarter worth $182 million.

In its Q1 2021 investor letter, Polen Capital, an asset management firm, highlighted a few stocks and Revolve Group, Inc. (NYSE: RVLV) was one of them. Here is what the fund said:

“Revolve is a leading, next-generation online retailer of apparel, accessories, and beauty for fashion-forward people. During the pandemic, Revolve pivoted its offerings and strategy to adapt to the new normal. The company expanded into adjacent categories like beauty, activewear, and intimates, enabling it to serve its customers’ more immediate needs, increase wallet share, and touch more aspects of their lives. This strategy shift was a success. The company delivered record profitability and free cash flow during Q4 2020.

The leadership team intends to use this strong position to prioritize several key strategic investments as the world recovers from COVID-19, including strengthening their Owned Brands portfolio, expanding marketing, and accelerating brand building around the globe. The company reported a record high Net Promoter Score (NPS) for 2020. In geographies where COVID-19 is considered generally under control, the company has seen a return of customer demand for their traditional product categories as well.”

Click to continue reading and see the 5 Stocks that Will Double In 2021.

The Mosaic Company Price and EPS Surprise

The Mosaic Company price-eps-surprise | The Mosaic Company Quote

Why is this Important?

A positive reading for the Zacks Earnings ESP has proven to be very powerful in producing both positive surprises, and outperforming the market. Our recent 10-year backtest shows that stocks that have a positive Earnings ESP and a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) or better show a positive surprise nearly 70% of the time, and have returned over 28% on average in annual returns (see more Top Earnings ESP stocks here).

Given that MOS has a Zacks Rank #3 and an ESP in positive territory, investors might want to consider this stock ahead of earnings. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

Clearly, recent earnings estimate revisions suggest that good things are ahead for Mosaic, and that a beat might be in the cards for the upcoming report.

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Zacks Investment Research

The Mosaic Company MOS is set to release second-quarter 2021 results on Aug 2, after the closing bell. Its second-quarter results are likely to reflect the benefits of higher prices and demand for phosphate and potash.

The fertilizer maker delivered an earnings surprise of 132.8%, on average, over the trailing four quarters. It posted an earnings surprise of 14% in the last reported quarter.

Shares of Mosaic have rallied 118.1% in the past year compared with 61.5% rise of the industry.

Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

Let’s see how things are shaping up for this announcement.

Zacks Model

Our proven model predicts an earnings beat for Mosaic this time around. The combination of a positive Earnings ESP and a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), 2 (Buy) or 3 (Hold) increases the chances of an earning beat.

Earnings ESP: Earnings ESP for Mosaic is +2.23%. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for earnings for the second quarter is currently pegged at $1.01. You can uncover the best stocks to buy or sell before they’re reported with our Earnings ESP Filter.

Zacks Rank: Mosaic currently carries a Zacks Rank #3.

What Do the Estimates Indicate?

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Mosaic’s second-quarter consolidated sales is currently pegged at $2,928 million, which calls for an increase of 43.2% from the year-ago quarter’s tally.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for net sales in the Phosphates segment is currently pegged at $1,189 million, which calls for an increase of 55.8% year over year.

Moreover, the consensus mark for net sales in the Potash segment is currently pinned at $664 million, which suggests an increase of 19.6% year over year.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for net sales in the Mosaic Fertilizantes segment is currently pegged at $1,230 million, which calls for a rise of 56.3% year over year.

Some Factors at Play

Mosaic is expected to have benefited from higher demand across its markets and increased prices in the second quarter. It is likely to have gained from higher sales volumes in Phosphates and Potash units in the quarter.

The company, in its first-quarter call, said that it expects to realize a roughly $80-$90 per ton improvement in realized prices in Phosphates on a sequential comparison basis in the second quarter. Moreover, it expects to achieve a $20-$30 per ton sequential increase in average realized prices in Potash in the second quarter.

Higher crop commodity prices and healthy farm economics are driving demand for fertilizers globally. Global phosphate markets remain robust on solid demand and pricing dynamics. Tight availability along with firm demand is driving up phosphate prices globally. Potash prices have also strengthened on the back of robust global demand, aided by strong grower economics, higher crop prices and low global inventory levels.

The company’s actions to improve its operating cost structure through transformation plans are also expected to have aided its profitability in the to-be-reported quarter. Transformational savings are also likely to have supported margins in the Mosaic Fertilizantes segment.

The Mosaic Company Price and EPS Surprise

The Mosaic Company price-eps-surprise | The Mosaic Company Quote

Stocks That Warrant a Look

Here are some companies in the basic materials space you may want to consider as our model shows they too have the right combination of elements to post an earnings beat this quarter:

LyondellBasell Industries N.V. LYB, scheduled to release earnings on Jul 30, has an Earnings ESP of +6.99% and sports a Zacks Rank #1. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

Westlake Chemical Corporation WLK scheduled to release earnings on Aug 3, has an Earnings ESP of +1.50% and carries a Zacks Rank #1.

Eastman Chemical Company EMN, scheduled to release earnings on Aug 2, has an Earnings ESP of +0.90% and carries a Zacks Rank #3.

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Eastman Chemical Company (EMN) : Free Stock Analysis Report

The Mosaic Company (MOS) : Free Stock Analysis Report

LyondellBasell Industries N.V. (LYB) : Free Stock Analysis Report

To read this article on Zacks.com click here.

Zacks Investment Research

Here at Zacks, our focus is on the proven Zacks Rank system, which emphasizes earnings estimates and estimate revisions to find great stocks. Nevertheless, we are always paying attention to the latest value, growth, and momentum trends to underscore strong picks.

Looking at the history of these trends, perhaps none is more beloved than value investing. This strategy simply looks to identify companies that are being undervalued by the broader market. Value investors use fundamental analysis and traditional valuation metrics to find stocks that they believe are being undervalued by the market at large.

In addition to the Zacks Rank, investors looking for stocks with specific traits can utilize our Style Scores system. Of course, value investors will be most interested in the system's "Value" category. Stocks with "A" grades for Value and high Zacks Ranks are among the best value stocks available at any given moment.

One stock to keep an eye on is Billiton (BBL). BBL is currently holding a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy) and a Value grade of A. The stock holds a P/E ratio of 6.51, while its industry has an average P/E of 7.34. Over the past year, BBL's Forward P/E has been as high as 14.06 and as low as 5.72, with a median of 10.05.

We should also highlight that BBL has a P/B ratio of 1.29. The P/B ratio pits a stock's market value against its book value, which is defined as total assets minus total liabilities. This company's current P/B looks solid when compared to its industry's average P/B of 3.52. Within the past 52 weeks, BBL's P/B has been as high as 1.32 and as low as 0.78, with a median of 1.13.

These are just a handful of the figures considered in Billiton's great Value grade. Still, they help show that the stock is likely being undervalued at the moment. Add this to the strength of its earnings outlook, and we can clearly see that BBL is an impressive value stock right now.

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The City of London financial district. Photo: Mike Kemp/In Pictures via Getty Images

European markets were mixed on Wednesday as earnings season kicked off in earnest, with a slew of banks reporting results alongside other big hitters.

In London the FTSE 100 (^FTSE) was up 0.3% by the closing bell, having seen few changes throughout the day. Germany's DAX (^GDAXI) was up 0.3% and France's CAC (^FCHI) headed 1% higher following a day of losses.

Investors held their nerve on an interesting day of trade with earning reports from Metro Bank (MTRO.L), Santander (SAN.MC), Barclays (BARC.L), Aston Martin (AML.L), GlaxoSmithKline (GSK.L), ITV (ITV.L), Deutsche Bank (DB), and Rio Tinto (RIO.L).

In the US, stocks made muted moves by the end of the day in London following some big-hitting tech earnings the day before. The S&P 500 (^GSPC) was 0.1% higher, the Dow (^DJI) was down 0.1% and the tech-heavy Nasdaq (^IXIC) rose 0.6%.

Apple (AAPL) and Google parent Alphabet (GOOGL) both reported earnings that beat Tuesday night's expectations.

Investors in the US will be pulled in different directions later on Wednesday due to the end of the Federal Reserve's policy meeting.

“It’s not enough to be making money now, investors need to know companies have a clear plan to make money tomorrow," said Danni Hewson, financial analyst at AJ Bell. "It’s been fascinating to watch share movements over the past couple of weeks as earnings season’s delivered day after day of stellar results.

"But this quarter is skewed, pandemic winners have probably reached peak boom and pandemic losers have yet to show turnaround growth. For Q2 more than ever it’s the outlook that’s been scrutinised, how well have bosses transmitted their future plans and how confident are shareholders."

Meanwhile, it was a mixed day of trade in Asia, following a heavy selloff the day before due to regulatory action in China. The Hang Seng (^HSI) reversed some of its losses to the tune of 0.9%, the SSE Composite (000001.SS) continued downward, and Japan's Nikkei (^N225) lost 1.4%.

On Monday, the Hang Seng had slid to its lowest level since May 2020, as news reverberated that Beijing was cracking down on parts of the tech and education industries.

According to the new reforms, these companies are not permitted to make profits or participate in stock markets in order to raise capital.

Watch: What are SPACs?

In the latest trading session, Mosaic (MOS) closed at $30.49, marking a +1.8% move from the previous day. The stock outpaced the S&P 500's daily loss of 0.02%.

Prior to today's trading, shares of the fertilizer maker had lost 2.76% over the past month. This has lagged the Basic Materials sector's gain of 2.77% and the S&P 500's gain of 2.91% in that time.

Investors will be hoping for strength from MOS as it approaches its next earnings release, which is expected to be August 2, 2021. On that day, MOS is projected to report earnings of $1.01 per share, which would represent year-over-year growth of 818.18%. Meanwhile, our latest consensus estimate is calling for revenue of $2.93 billion, up 43.19% from the prior-year quarter.

Looking at the full year, our Zacks Consensus Estimates suggest analysts are expecting earnings of $3.64 per share and revenue of $11.54 billion. These totals would mark changes of +328.24% and +32.93%, respectively, from last year.

Investors might also notice recent changes to analyst estimates for MOS. These recent revisions tend to reflect the evolving nature of short-term business trends. As a result, we can interpret positive estimate revisions as a good sign for the company's business outlook.

Research indicates that these estimate revisions are directly correlated with near-term share price momentum. To benefit from this, we have developed the Zacks Rank, a proprietary model which takes these estimate changes into account and provides an actionable rating system.

Ranging from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell), the Zacks Rank system has a proven, outside-audited track record of outperformance, with #1 stocks returning an average of +25% annually since 1988. The Zacks Consensus EPS estimate has moved 15.56% higher within the past month. MOS is currently a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).

Investors should also note MOS's current valuation metrics, including its Forward P/E ratio of 8.23. Its industry sports an average Forward P/E of 13.97, so we one might conclude that MOS is trading at a discount comparatively.

Also, we should mention that MOS has a PEG ratio of 1.18. The PEG ratio is similar to the widely-used P/E ratio, but this metric also takes the company's expected earnings growth rate into account. The Fertilizers was holding an average PEG ratio of 1.55 at yesterday's closing price.

The Fertilizers industry is part of the Basic Materials sector. This group has a Zacks Industry Rank of 21, putting it in the top 9% of all 250+ industries.

The Zacks Industry Rank includes is listed in order from best to worst in terms of the average Zacks Rank of the individual companies within each of these sectors. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1.

You can find more information on all of these metrics, and much more, on Zacks.com.

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The Mosaic Company (MOS) : Free Stock Analysis Report

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Zacks Investment Research

(Bloomberg) — Union leaders at Escondida are calling on workers to reject owner BHP Group’s final wage offer, raising the possibility of a strike at the world’s largest copper mine at a time of tight global supplies and high prices.

An offer delivered at the end of regular wage talks in Chile falls short of worker demands, with the company pushing for longer hours in a bid to boost productivity and profit, the union said in a statement Wednesday. The 2,330 members will vote on the offer through July 31.

A strike is “the only tool left to workers in this scenario to press for an urgent rectification in the way things are done by management,” the union said. “The responsibility to avoid a serious conflict is entirely in the hands of the transnational BHP.”

While Chilean labor rules give either side the option to seek mediation before a strike could begin, the union has a track record of following through: In 2017, it roiled the copper market with a 44-day stoppage. A disruption at a mine that last year churned out 1.2 million metric tons would tighten supplies of the metal used in wiring just as a global economic recovery pushes up demand.

High metal prices are prompting host nations to seek a bigger share of the mining windfall, with Chilean lawmakers discussing a royalty bill as part of a push to address lingering inequalities in the country. Mining companies are striving to keep their labor costs in check in a cyclical business and as ore quality deteriorates and prices of inputs start to rise.

While terms of the Escondida offer weren’t released, the union is demanding an additional bonus equivalent to 1% of dividends paid to the mine’s owners as recognition of sacrifices made by workers, especially during the pandemic.

“The offer proposed by the company improves current conditions and incorporates new benefits in matters highly valued by workers,” BHP said in a statement. “This was built based on conversations held with Union No. 1 and reflects the intention of the company to build an agreement that is mutually beneficial, based on dialog and mutual cooperation.”

(Adds company comment in final paragraph)

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(Bloomberg) — Rio Tinto Group, the world’s biggest iron ore miner, reported its highest-ever interim profit and will pay $9.1 billion in dividends as the company and its global rivals cash in on this year’s commodities rally.

Rio is the first of the majors to post earnings, kicking off a reporting season that’s expected to see record results across the board. The industry has been one of the biggest beneficiaries from the world’s efforts to emerge from the pandemic. The trillions of dollars poured into recovery packages have ignited demand for commodities like iron ore and copper, driving prices sharply higher and sending inflation pressures rippling through the global economy.

Wednesday’s results are also the first period under the leadership of new Chief Executive Officer Jakob Stausholm, who was appointed after Jean-Sebastien Jacques left the company because of a backlash over Rio’s destruction of an ancient Aboriginal site last year. The surge in commodity prices means the new boss comes in on a high note for Rio, even as the company grapples with a slew of production setbacks that have dogged its operations in recent years.

Disruptions caused by Covid, and especially the company’s ability to move workers to its sites, added to existing problems in the first half, especially around the development of a copper project in Mongolia and at its key profit-driving iron ore mines in Western Australia. Rio’s copper business has also seen production fall as Covid takes its toll.

“In the first half we experienced too much operation instability. We have to sharpen the consistency of our performance,” the CEO said on a media call. “While today’s results clearly demonstrate the underlying quality of our asset base, our operational performance clearly is not where it has been in the past or where we want it to be.”

Stausholm also sounded a cautious note on the outlook for commodities demand in top consumer China.

“The long-term potential for China is still intact but we probably have seen a non-sustainable high level of industrial development in some of the months in the first half of this year,” he said on a call with reporters.

Rio’s shares slipped 0.6% in London, in line with a wider decline among most of its peers.

The company reported first-half underlying earnings more than doubled to $12.2 billion from the same period last year as prices for iron ore and copper surged. The half-year payout — which includes a special dividend of $3 billion — is more than the mining giant returned to shareholders for the whole of 2020 and higher than analysts forecast.

While Rio’s paying out record amounts to shareholders, the company signaled this week it’s also keen to invest in growing production in key commodities — particularly those that will benefit from the world’s shift toward green energy.

The company announced Tuesday it plans to spend $2.4 billion building a lithium mine in Serbia. While it’s the first big move by a mining major into lithium, used in rechargeable batteries, the investment reflects an ongoing push by the world’s biggest mining companies into “future facing” commodities like battery metals or fertilizer, at the same time that the industry is moving to get out of fossil fuels.

“Rio appears to be shifting from austerity and capital returns to more of a focus on growth,” Jefferies analyst Christopher LaFemina wrote in a note. “While Rio had some operational issues in the period, the big picture here is that these are stellar financial results.”

(Updates with comments from CEO in fifth paragraph.)

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RIO earnings call for the period ending June 30, 2021.

The Reno-Sparks Indian Colony and Atsa koodakuh wyh Nuwu/People of Red Mountain will effectively become co-plaintiffs in a lawsuit filed earlier this year against the project by four environmental groups. The tribes plan to file an injunction request on Thursday in an attempt to temporarily halt excavation at the mine site. (Reporting by Ernest Scheyder; Editing by Leslie Adler)

Compass Minerals (CMP) is expected to deliver a year-over-year decline in earnings on lower revenues when it reports results for the quarter ended June 2021. This widely-known consensus outlook gives a good sense of the company's earnings picture, but how the actual results compare to these estimates is a powerful factor that could impact its near-term stock price.

The stock might move higher if these key numbers top expectations in the upcoming earnings report, which is expected to be released on August 4. On the other hand, if they miss, the stock may move lower.

While the sustainability of the immediate price change and future earnings expectations will mostly depend on management's discussion of business conditions on the earnings call, it's worth handicapping the probability of a positive EPS surprise.

Zacks Consensus Estimate

This minerals producer is expected to post quarterly loss of $0.06 per share in its upcoming report, which represents a year-over-year change of -250%.

Revenues are expected to be $180.55 million, down 29.5% from the year-ago quarter.

Estimate Revisions Trend

The consensus EPS estimate for the quarter has remained unchanged over the last 30 days. This is essentially a reflection of how the covering analysts have collectively reassessed their initial estimates over this period.

Investors should keep in mind that an aggregate change may not always reflect the direction of estimate revisions by each of the covering analysts.

Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise

Earnings Whisper

Estimate revisions ahead of a company's earnings release offer clues to the business conditions for the period whose results are coming out. Our proprietary surprise prediction model — the Zacks Earnings ESP (Expected Surprise Prediction) — has this insight at its core.

The Zacks Earnings ESP compares the Most Accurate Estimate to the Zacks Consensus Estimate for the quarter; the Most Accurate Estimate is a more recent version of the Zacks Consensus EPS estimate. The idea here is that analysts revising their estimates right before an earnings release have the latest information, which could potentially be more accurate than what they and others contributing to the consensus had predicted earlier.

Thus, a positive or negative Earnings ESP reading theoretically indicates the likely deviation of the actual earnings from the consensus estimate. However, the model's predictive power is significant for positive ESP readings only.

A positive Earnings ESP is a strong predictor of an earnings beat, particularly when combined with a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), 2 (Buy) or 3 (Hold). Our research shows that stocks with this combination produce a positive surprise nearly 70% of the time, and a solid Zacks Rank actually increases the predictive power of Earnings ESP.

Please note that a negative Earnings ESP reading is not indicative of an earnings miss. Our research shows that it is difficult to predict an earnings beat with any degree of confidence for stocks with negative Earnings ESP readings and/or Zacks Rank of 4 (Sell) or 5 (Strong Sell).

How Have the Numbers Shaped Up for Compass?

For Compass, the Most Accurate Estimate is the same as the Zacks Consensus Estimate, suggesting that there are no recent analyst views which differ from what have been considered to derive the consensus estimate. This has resulted in an Earnings ESP of 0%.

On the other hand, the stock currently carries a Zacks Rank of #4.

So, this combination makes it difficult to conclusively predict that Compass will beat the consensus EPS estimate.

Does Earnings Surprise History Hold Any Clue?

While calculating estimates for a company's future earnings, analysts often consider to what extent it has been able to match past consensus estimates. So, it's worth taking a look at the surprise history for gauging its influence on the upcoming number.

For the last reported quarter, it was expected that Compass would post earnings of $0.72 per share when it actually produced earnings of $0.95, delivering a surprise of +31.94%.

Over the last four quarters, the company has beaten consensus EPS estimates two times.

Bottom Line

An earnings beat or miss may not be the sole basis for a stock moving higher or lower. Many stocks end up losing ground despite an earnings beat due to other factors that disappoint investors. Similarly, unforeseen catalysts help a number of stocks gain despite an earnings miss.

That said, betting on stocks that are expected to beat earnings expectations does increase the odds of success. This is why it's worth checking a company's Earnings ESP and Zacks Rank ahead of its quarterly release. Make sure to utilize our Earnings ESP Filter to uncover the best stocks to buy or sell before they've reported.

Compass doesn't appear a compelling earnings-beat candidate. However, investors should pay attention to other factors too for betting on this stock or staying away from it ahead of its earnings release.

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Image source: The Motley Fool. Israel Chemicals Limited Ordinary Shares (NYSE: ICL)Q2 2021 Earnings CallJul 28, 2021, 8:30 a.m. ETContents: Prepared Remarks Questions and Answers Call Participants Prepared Remarks: OperatorLadies and gentlemen, thank you for standing by, and welcome to the ICL analysts conference call.

In this article you are going to find out whether hedge funds think BHP Group (NYSE:BHP) is a good investment right now. We like to check what the smart money thinks first before doing extensive research on a given stock. Although there have been several high profile failed hedge fund picks, the consensus picks among hedge fund investors have historically outperformed the market after adjusting for known risk attributes. It's not surprising given that hedge funds have access to better information and more resources to predict the winners in the stock market.

Is BHP Group (NYSE:BHP) a first-rate investment now? Investors who are in the know were reducing their bets on the stock. The number of long hedge fund bets fell by 2 in recent months. BHP Group (NYSE:BHP) was in 18 hedge funds' portfolios at the end of March. The all time high for this statistic is 24. Our calculations also showed that BHP isn't among the 30 most popular stocks among hedge funds (click for Q1 rankings). There were 20 hedge funds in our database with BHP positions at the end of the fourth quarter.

Hedge funds' reputation as shrewd investors has been tarnished in the last decade as their hedged returns couldn't keep up with the unhedged returns of the market indices. Our research has shown that hedge funds' small-cap stock picks managed to beat the market by double digits annually between 1999 and 2016, but the margin of outperformance has been declining in recent years. Nevertheless, we were still able to identify in advance a select group of hedge fund holdings that outperformed the S&P 500 ETFs by 115 percentage points since March 2017 (see the details here). We were also able to identify in advance a select group of hedge fund holdings that underperformed the market by 10 percentage points annually between 2006 and 2017. Interestingly the margin of underperformance of these stocks has been increasing in recent years. Investors who are long the market and short these stocks would have returned more than 27% annually between 2015 and 2017. We have been tracking and sharing the list of these stocks since February 2017 in our quarterly newsletter.

At Insider Monkey, we scour multiple sources to uncover the next great investment idea. For example, pet market is growing at a 7% annual rate and is expected to reach $110 billion in 2021. So, we are checking out the 5 best stocks for animal lovers. We go through lists like the 15 best Jim Cramer stocks to identify the next Tesla that will deliver outsized returns. Even though we recommend positions in only a tiny fraction of the companies we analyze, we check out as many stocks as we can. We read hedge fund investor letters and listen to stock pitches at hedge fund conferences. You can subscribe to our free daily newsletter on our homepage. With all of this in mind we're going to check out the latest hedge fund action encompassing BHP Group (NYSE:BHP).

Do Hedge Funds Think BHP Is A Good Stock To Buy Now?

At the end of March, a total of 18 of the hedge funds tracked by Insider Monkey were bullish on this stock, a change of -10% from the previous quarter. On the other hand, there were a total of 18 hedge funds with a bullish position in BHP a year ago. So, let's see which hedge funds were among the top holders of the stock and which hedge funds were making big moves.

More specifically, Fisher Asset Management was the largest shareholder of BHP Group (NYSE:BHP), with a stake worth $553.8 million reported as of the end of March. Trailing Fisher Asset Management was Arrowstreet Capital, which amassed a stake valued at $114.3 million. Renaissance Technologies, CQS Cayman LP, and Citadel Investment Group were also very fond of the stock, becoming one of the largest hedge fund holders of the company. In terms of the portfolio weights assigned to each position CQS Cayman LP allocated the biggest weight to BHP Group (NYSE:BHP), around 2.79% of its 13F portfolio. Hourglass Capital is also relatively very bullish on the stock, earmarking 1.58 percent of its 13F equity portfolio to BHP.

Due to the fact that BHP Group (NYSE:BHP) has witnessed declining sentiment from hedge fund managers, logic holds that there was a specific group of money managers who were dropping their positions entirely heading into Q2. Intriguingly, Simon Sadler's Segantii Capital dumped the largest position of all the hedgies watched by Insider Monkey, valued at close to $49.4 million in stock, and Ben Levine, Andrew Manuel and Stefan Renold's LMR Partners was right behind this move, as the fund dumped about $24.7 million worth. These moves are important to note, as aggregate hedge fund interest dropped by 2 funds heading into Q2.

Let's also examine hedge fund activity in other stocks similar to BHP Group (NYSE:BHP). These stocks are McDonald's Corporation (NYSE:MCD), Pinduoduo Inc. (NASDAQ:PDD), Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC), Danaher Corporation (NYSE:DHR), Medtronic plc (NYSE:MDT), Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO), and Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST). This group of stocks' market values are closest to BHP's market value.

[table] Ticker, No of HFs with positions, Total Value of HF Positions (x1000), Change in HF Position MCD,67,3783829,5 PDD,56,6293871,2 WFC,96,7454581,-3 DHR,81,5796963,0 MDT,65,3627546,6 NVO,23,2929727,0 COST,56,4014769,-5 Average,63.4,4843041,0.7 [/table]

View table here if you experience formatting issues.

As you can see these stocks had an average of 63.4 hedge funds with bullish positions and the average amount invested in these stocks was $4843 million. That figure was $874 million in BHP's case. Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) is the most popular stock in this table. On the other hand Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO) is the least popular one with only 23 bullish hedge fund positions. Compared to these stocks BHP Group (NYSE:BHP) is even less popular than NVO. Our overall hedge fund sentiment score for BHP is 25.5. Stocks with higher number of hedge fund positions relative to other stocks as well as relative to their historical range receive a higher sentiment score. Hedge funds dodged a bullet by taking a bearish stance towards BHP. Our calculations showed that the top 10 most popular hedge fund stocks returned 95.8% in 2019 and 2020, and outperformed the S&P 500 ETF (SPY) by 40 percentage points. These stocks gained 28.5% in 2021 through July 23rd but managed to beat the market again by 10.1 percentage points. Unfortunately BHP wasn't nearly as popular as these 5 stocks (hedge fund sentiment was very bearish); BHP investors were disappointed as the stock returned 10.1% since the end of the first quarter (through 7/23) and underperformed the market. If you are interested in investing in large cap stocks with huge upside potential, you should check out the top 5 most popular stocks among hedge funds as most of these stocks already outperformed the market since 2019.

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Investors looking for stocks in the Mining – Miscellaneous sector might want to consider either Rio Tinto (RIO) or BHP (BHP). But which of these two stocks presents investors with the better value opportunity right now? Let's take a closer look.

We have found that the best way to discover great value opportunities is to pair a strong Zacks Rank with a great grade in the Value category of our Style Scores system. The Zacks Rank favors stocks with strong earnings estimate revision trends, and our Style Scores highlight companies with specific traits.

Right now, Rio Tinto is sporting a Zacks Rank of #1 (Strong Buy), while BHP has a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy). The Zacks Rank favors stocks that have recently seen positive revisions to their earnings estimates, so investors should rest assured that RIO has an improving earnings outlook. However, value investors will care about much more than just this.

Value investors are also interested in a number of tried-and-true valuation metrics that help show when a company is undervalued at its current share price levels.

The Value category of the Style Scores system identifies undervalued companies by looking at a number of key metrics. These include the long-favored P/E ratio, P/S ratio, earnings yield, cash flow per share, and a variety of other fundamentals that help us determine a company's fair value.

RIO currently has a forward P/E ratio of 5.33, while BHP has a forward P/E of 7.61. We also note that RIO has a PEG ratio of 1.25. This figure is similar to the commonly-used P/E ratio, with the PEG ratio also factoring in a company's expected earnings growth rate. BHP currently has a PEG ratio of 1.84.

Another notable valuation metric for RIO is its P/B ratio of 2.07. Investors use the P/B ratio to look at a stock's market value versus its book value, which is defined as total assets minus total liabilities. By comparison, BHP has a P/B of 2.43.

These are just a few of the metrics contributing to RIO's Value grade of B and BHP's Value grade of C.

RIO has seen stronger estimate revision activity and sports more attractive valuation metrics than BHP, so it seems like value investors will conclude that RIO is the superior option right now.

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For those looking to find strong Basic Materials stocks, it is prudent to search for companies in the group that are outperforming their peers. BHP Group Limited Sponsored (BHP) is a stock that can certainly grab the attention of many investors, but do its recent returns compare favorably to the sector as a whole? A quick glance at the company's year-to-date performance in comparison to the rest of the Basic Materials sector should help us answer this question.

BHP Group Limited Sponsored is one of 251 companies in the Basic Materials group. The Basic Materials group currently sits at #6 within the Zacks Sector Rank. The Zacks Sector Rank gauges the strength of our 16 individual sector groups by measuring the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks within the groups.

The Zacks Rank emphasizes earnings estimates and estimate revisions to find stocks with improving earnings outlooks. This system has a long record of success, and these stocks tend to be on track to beat the market over the next one to three months. BHP is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).

Over the past 90 days, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for BHP's full-year earnings has moved 44.44% higher. This is a sign of improving analyst sentiment and a positive earnings outlook trend.

Based on the latest available data, BHP has gained about 20.95% so far this year. At the same time, Basic Materials stocks have gained an average of 19.15%. This shows that BHP Group Limited Sponsored is outperforming its peers so far this year.

Looking more specifically, BHP belongs to the Mining – Miscellaneous industry, a group that includes 47 individual stocks and currently sits at #189 in the Zacks Industry Rank. This group has gained an average of 34.92% so far this year, so BHP is slightly underperforming its industry in this area.

Investors in the Basic Materials sector will want to keep a close eye on BHP as it attempts to continue its solid performance.

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LONDON, July 27, 2021–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Rio Tinto has committed $2.4 billion to the Jadar lithium-borates project in Serbia, one of the world’s largest greenfield lithium projects. The project remains subject to receiving all relevant approvals, permits and licences and ongoing engagement with local communities, the Government of Serbia and civil society.

The Jadar project would scale up Rio Tinto’s exposure to battery materials, and demonstrate the company’s commitment to investing capital in a disciplined manner to further strengthen its portfolio for the global energy transition.

Jadar will produce battery-grade lithium carbonate, a critical mineral used in large scale batteries for electric vehicles and storing renewable energy, and position Rio Tinto as the largest source of lithium supply in Europe for at least the next 15 years. In addition, Jadar will produce borates, which are used in solar panels and wind turbines.

Jadar will be one of the largest industrial investments in Serbia, contributing 1% directly and 4% indirectly to GDP, with many Serbian suppliers involved in the construction of the mine. Rio Tinto is committed to help develop local businesses so that they can support the operation over the coming decades. It will also be a significant employer, creating 2,100 jobs during construction and 1,000 mining and processing jobs once in production.

Rio Tinto Chief Executive Jakob Stausholm said "We have great confidence in the Jadar project and are ready to invest, subject to approvals. Serbia and Rio Tinto will be well-positioned to capture the opportunity offered by rising demand for lithium, driven by the global energy transition and the project will strengthen our offering, particularly to the European market. It could supply enough lithium to power over one million electric vehicles per year¹.

"The Jadar deposit and its unique mineral, Jadarite, discovered by Rio Tinto geologists in 2004 contains high-grade mineralisation of boron and lithium, supporting a long-life operation in the first quartile of the cost curve for both products."

"We are committed to upholding the highest environmental standards and building sustainable futures for the communities where we operate. We recognise that in progressing this project, we must listen to and respect the views of all stakeholders."

Rio Tinto continues to work with a wide group of local and global experts across all aspects of the environmental, social and governance impacts and has done so for many years. For example, to date we have finalised 12 environmental studies and more than 23,000 biological, physical and chemical analyses of air and water. This consultation is ongoing and will continue to inform our final submissions for approval.

The Jadar development will include an underground mine with associated infrastructure and equipment, including electric haul trucks, as well as a beneficiation chemical processing plant. To minimise the impact to communities, it will be built to the highest environmental standards, including utilising dry stacking of tailings. This innovative method allows the dry tailings to be progressively reclaimed with vegetation and soil with no need for a tailings dam. Water management will be state of the art with a dedicated facility resulting in approximately 70% of raw water coming from recycled sources or treated mine water.

First saleable production is expected in 2026 at a time of strong market fundamentals with lithium demand forecast to grow 25-35% per annum over the next decade. Following ramp up to full production in 2029, the mine will produce ~58,000 tonnes of lithium carbonate, 160,000 tonnes of boric acid (B₂O₃ units) and 255,000 tonnes of sodium sulphate² annually, making Rio Tinto one of the top ten lithium producers in the world. Based on this annual production of lithium carbonate, Rio Tinto aims to produce 2.3 million tonnes of lithium carbonate over the expected 40-year life of mine.

The next steps for the project are seeking an exploitation licence and receipt of regulatory approvals. This includes approval of the environmental impact assessment (EIA) studies, which will shortly be made available to the public for comment. The EIA is required for the commencement of works, with construction targeted to start in 2022.

¹Assuming 60kWh battery size

²These production targets were previously reported in a release to the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX) dated 10 December 2020, "Rio Tinto declares maiden Ore Reserve at Jadar" (for battery-grade lithium carbonate it was 55,000 tonnes). All material assumptions underpinning the production targets continue to apply and have not materially changed.

This announcement is authorised for release to the market by Steve Allen, Rio Tinto’s Group Company Secretary.

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Rio Tinto plc

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Category: Jadar

(Reuters) – BHP Group has made a C$325 million ($258.45 million) approach for Noront Resources, rivaling an offer from Australian mining billionaire Andrew Forrest's Wyloo Metals for the Canadian nickel-copper miner.

The scramble for Noront underscores the race to secure supplies of battery metals among miners ahead of an expected surge in demand due to the rise of electric vehicles.

Noront owns the early-stage Eagle's Nest deposit, billed by Wyloo as the largest high-grade nickel discovery in Canada since the Voisey's Bay nickel find in the eastern province of Newfoundland and Labrador, with an initial mine life of 11 years.

BHP said on Tuesday its offer valued Noront at C$0.55 per share, representing a premium of 129% to the firm's closing price on May 21, a day before Wyloo unveiled its proposal.

"For BHP, the acquisition of Noront presents a world-class growth option, in a key future-facing commodity," BHP Chief Development Officer, Johan van Jaarsveld, said in a statement.

Noront said its board has recommended the Anglo-Australian company's offer.

Wyloo Metals, which is Noront's top shareholder with a 23% stake as of December, had in May offered C$0.315 per share for the stock it did not already hold in the company. Noront had adopted a poison pill to stop the takeover.

Wyloo was not immediately available for comment on Tuesday.

BHP's offer also comes after the mining giant moved its exploration headquarters to Canada and said it would almost double exploration spending for base metals within five years.

(Reporting by Arunima Kumar in Bengaluru; Editing by Aditya Soni)

(Bloomberg) — Rio Tinto Group plans to spend $2.4 billion building a lithium mine in Serbia, in the latest sign that the biggest miners are pushing into metals poised to benefit from the green-energy transition.

The biggest producers are churning out record profits after commodities rallied this year, raising the question of what the industry will do with all the extra cash. Most have been focused on returning money to shareholders through dividends and buybacks — analysts are expecting more big payouts in the coming weeks, including from Rio itself when the world’s second-biggest miner reports financial results on Wednesday.

But there are also signs that the industry is increasingly keen to invest more in growing production of key “future facing” commodities like battery metals or fertilizer. Rio’s announcement marks the first big move by a mining major into lithium, which is used in rechargeable batteries.

Earlier Tuesday, larger rival BHP Group announced plans to buy the owner of a Canadian nickel project — another vital component of the types of batteries that power electric cars or back up renewable energy. Rio in May acquired a stake in a Canadian copper project, while BHP has been building a holding in a company planning to develop a giant copper mine in Ecuador, and is expected to sanction a giant potash project as soon as next month.

It also comes at a time when the biggest miners are looking to shift away from fossil fuels, increasingly shunned by investors. Rio sold its last coal mine in 2019 and is the only major miner to be fossil-fuel free. And its peers are slowly following. Anglo American Plc has agreed to sell its last thermal coal mines, while BHP is in the process of exiting thermal coal and is considering getting out of oil and gas.

Rio has been working on the Jadar project in Serbia for years, and had been expected to make an investment decision this year. The mine will help the company diversify away from iron ore, which dominates its earnings, and will allow it to produce lithium close to the key German carmaking industry.

Rio said on Tuesday that the project is expected to start operating in 2026 and hit full-production in 2029. The investment, which still depends on getting the necessary approvals in Serbia, would make the company a top-10 lithium producer.

Still, there may be obstacles. The Serbian government has promised voters it will hold a referendum on the project, while touting its benefit as a huge growth driver for the Serbian economy. Serbian authorities are opposed to exporting lithium carbonate as raw material for batteries and want to see local production of lithium-based batteries, possibly even electric-vehicles.

“The Jadar project would scale up Rio Tinto’s exposure to battery materials, and demonstrate the company’s commitment to investing capital in a disciplined manner to further strengthen its portfolio for the global energy transition,” Rio said in a statement Tuesday.

(Updates with details throughout)

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(Bloomberg) — Rio Tinto Plc workers went on strike over labor contracts at an aluminum smelter in British Columbia on Sunday, their union said in a statement.

About 900 Rio Tinto workers at smelting facilities in Kitimat were on strike as of 12:01 a.m. local time Sunday, Unifor said in a release posted on the union’s website. The union accused the company of violating existing contracts by using contractors and temporary employees and failing to address concerns over pensions and retiree benefits.

“Our union is fully prepared to defend our members’ rights and protect good jobs in Kitimat now and in the future,” Jerry Dias, Unifor’s national president, said in the release.

Staff and employees required under an order by the B.C. Labour Relations Board have taken on duties to continue operations, Simon Letendre, a Rio Tinto spokesman, said in an email. The company is assessing how the strike will affect aluminum production and will work to limit disruptions. The strike commenced after the current collective labor agreement expired, he said.

“Rio Tinto has made every effort to reach a mutually beneficial agreement through negotiating in good faith with Unifor Local 2301 over the past seven weeks, and will continue to do so,” Letendre said. “Regrettably, the union refused the company’s proposal to request the intervention of a mediator.”

The Canadian smelter has been in operation since 1954 and produced 329,000 metric tons of aluminum in 2020, according to the company website.

(Adds company comments in fourth, fifth paragraphs)

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(Bloomberg) — The world’s biggest mining companies are about to start revealing how much cash they’re churning out from this year’s commodity boom. Look out for record profits followed by eye-watering dividend payouts.

The top-five western diversified miners may have earned a combined $85 billion for the first half of the year, according to analyst estimates, more than double the level from a year ago. Rio Tinto Group, the first to report on Wednesday, is expected to announce $22 billion of profit for the six months, on a par with its total for all of 2020.

The mining sector has been one of the biggest beneficiaries from the world’s efforts to emerge from the pandemic. The trillions of dollars poured into recovery packages have ignited demand for commodities like steel, iron ore and aluminum, driving prices sharply higher and sending inflation pressures rippling through the global economy.

Read more: Record Metals Prices Catapult Mining Profits Beyond Big Oil

And while previous rallies lured the industry into ambitious investment plans to build and expand mines, many producers this time appear content to return their profit windfalls to investors. The two biggest — Rio and larger rival BHP Group — have already been funneling record returns to shareholders.

Each of the group of five majors — which also includes Glencore Plc, Anglo American Plc and Vale SA — are expected to report their biggest-ever earnings for the six months through June, according to average analyst estimates compiled by Bloomberg. Rio could pay out 60% of its underlying earnings, according to some analyst estimates.

“This should be a pretty much stellar set of results all round,” said Ben Davis, an analyst at Liberum Capital. “We’re expecting record dividends from BHP and Rio, while Anglo and Glencore also have the potential to surprise.”

Iron ore has been a big driver of profit for the largest producers. The world’s biggest commodity after oil hit a record in the first-half, and has spent the last three months hovering around $200 a ton, a level not seen in a decade. Steel and copper prices both set fresh records this year, thermal coal has also soared, and even diamonds have had a resurgence.

Some prices have retreated recently amid concerns about rising Covid-19 cases and as China moves to curb rising costs. Yet commodity prices across the board remain historically high for now.

U.S. copper miner Freeport-McMoRan Inc. gave a hint of what to expect when it reported last week. The company has wiped out $5 billion of debt in the last 12 months, hitting its target months ahead of schedule, and setting the stage for an increase in shareholder returns.

Anglo American Platinum Ltd. added to that on Monday. The company, 79% owned by Anglo American, paid out a record dividend of $3.1 billion that equates to 100% of first-half headline earnings.

For the iron ore miners such as Vale, BHP and Rio, it promises to be even better. Demand for the steelmaking ingredient, especially from China, is rampant and supply is constrained. China, which accounts for about half of global steel production, is making a record amount of the metal, while iron ore supply has never recovered from two dam disasters in Brazil.

Of course, the mining companies are not immune to inflation themselves — iron ore operations in Australia are grappling with a sharp rise in labor costs due to worker shortages. And governments in resource-rich countries, especially in Latin America, are also looking at the industry as a source of extra revenue after the commodities rally.

For now though, the miners are cashing in.

(Updates with Anglo American Platinum dividend in 10th paragraph.)

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FORT DAUPHIN, Madagascar, July 26, 2021–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Rio Tinto has signed a power purchasing agreement for a new renewable energy plant to power the operations of its QMM ilmenite mine in Fort Dauphin, Southern Madagascar.

This project, which uses solar and wind energy, will significantly contribute towards Rio Tinto’s operations in Madagascar achieving its carbon neutral objective by 2023. The project is part of a broader initiative to reduce the ilmenite mine’s environmental footprint which includes programmes that focus on emissions reduction, waste and water management, carbon sequestration, ecological restoration and reforestation.

The renewable energy plant, to be built, owned and operated by independent power producer, CrossBoundary Energy (CBE), over a 20-year period, will consist of an 8 MW solar facility and a 12 MW wind energy facility to power mining and processing operations. There will also be a lithium-ion battery energy storage system of up to 8.25 MW as reserve capacity to ensure a stable and reliable network.

It will supply all of QMM’s electricity demand during peak generation times, and up to 60 percent of the operations’ annual electricity consumption. QMM will replace the majority of the power it currently supplies to the town of Fort Dauphin and the community of around 80,000 people with renewables.

The renewable energy plant will comprise more than 18,000 solar panels and up to nine wind turbines located in the Port Ehoala Park area. Construction is expected to begin this year with the solar plant scheduled to start operations at the beginning 2022. The wind power plant is planned to commence construction early 2022 and become operational by the end of 2022.

QMM President Ny Fanja Rakotomalala said: "This project is a strong example of our commitment with the Government of Madagascar to the sustainable development of the region. On a sunny and windy day, all the electricity needed by QMM and the Fort Dauphin community will be generated by the Malagasy sun and wind. It is a major step forward on our journey towards a truly sustainable mine, that protects and promotes the uniqueness of Madagascar’s environment and benefits the community with reliable and clean electricity."

Secretary General, Ministry of Energy and Hydrocarbons of the Republic of Madagascar, Andriatongarivo Tojonirina Andrisoa, said: "The Government of Madagascar is committed to the energy transition and to setting up Madagascar to be energy independent, as stated in the President’s Initiative pour l’Emergence de Madagascar (IEM). QMM’s renewable energy project, technically ambitious with two installations dedicated to solar and wind, is fully aligned with that vision. It makes Madagascar a global reference point for the use of renewable energy to supply clean, reliable power in the mining sector and other industries, and to the community."

Rio Tinto Minerals Chief Executive Sinead Kaufman said: "With this flagship project, QMM is leading the way at Rio Tinto and in Madagascar in utilizing renewable energy to power mining operations and reduce carbon emissions."

CrossBoundary Energy Co-founder and Managing Partner Matt Tilleard commented: "Emissions from electricity use in mining is estimated to account for around 1% of all greenhouse gases globally. Rio Tinto is leading the way in demonstrating how mines can seize a huge opportunity to reduce these emissions. We are focused on delivering cleaner power to businesses and were therefore able to offer Rio Tinto a flexible, fast, all-equity funding approach, combined with our reliable track record as one of Africa’s largest distributed renewable utilities."

About QIT Madagascar Minerals

QIT Madagascar Minerals (QMM), is a joint venture between Rio Tinto (80%) and the government of Madagascar (20%). It is located near Fort Dauphin in the Anosy region of south-eastern Madagascar, and primarily produces ilmenite which is a major source of titanium dioxide, predominantly used as a white pigment in products such as paints and paper.

QMM also produces zirsill used in the manufacturing ceramic tiles and digital screens, and monazite, a rare earth element, used in renewable energy technologies like high-powered permanent magnets used in wind turbines and electric vehicles.

QMM includes the deep-water Port d’Ehoala, where the raw material is shipped to the Rio Tinto Fer et Titane plant in Canada and processed into titanium dioxide.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210726005386/en/

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Rio Tinto plc
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Category: QMM

(Adds background, details from release)

July 26 (Reuters) – Miner Rio Tinto said on Monday it planned to cut production at its BC Works aluminium smelter in Kitimat, Canada to 35% following a strike initiated by the Canadian union Unifor after negotiation talks failed.

Unifor said on Sunday about 900 workers had started strike action at the miner's operations in the western Canadian province of British Columbia, after nearly seven weeks of unproductive talks over proposed changes to workers' retirement benefits and unresolved grievances.

Rio Tinto employs about 1,050 people at the BC Works smelter and Kemano powerhouse, of which the union represents about 900 workers.

The miner, which has been granted an essential services order by the British Columbia Labour Relations Board, said a reduced workforce is also in place to ensure the Kemano hydro-power facility continues to run. [https://refini.tv/2Wf54r0 ] (Reporting by Rithika Krishna in Bengaluru; Editing by Shinjini Ganguli)

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