
ENDEAVOUR Mining announced a record dividend of 57 US cents per share or $140m following improved cash generation in the second half of its 2024 financial year. This takes the total dividend to 98c per share or a payout of $240m in total.
Including $37m in additional share buybacks, total returns were $277m, the equivalent of $251/oz produced, the company said today in a fourth quarter and full year update.
Ian Cockerill, CEO of Endeavour said the decision to pay the record final dividend was owing to a recent cash injection and low leverage. The company is targeting adjusted Ebitda to net debt of 0.57x against a year-end ratio of 0.60x.
Endeavour had a strong fourth production quarter. Gold output was 34% higher at some 363,000 oz compared to the previous third quarter. As a reult, all-in sustaining costs came down 11% to $1,140/oz for the fourth quarter.
But on an annual basis, Endeavour’s production disappointed, coming in at 1,1 million oz at AISC of $1,220/oz, the latter above the guided range. This was owing to higher costs at Sabodala-Massawa in Senegal, higher power costs and higher royalty costs due to the improvement in the gold price last year
Despite this, shares in the company gained 3.5% in London on Thursday taking gains to 6% for the year. On a 12-month basis, shares in Endeavour are 13.6% higher.
For the 2025 financial year, Endeavour is targeting higher production in the range of 1.11 million to 1.26 million oz – an increase year-on-year of 157,000 oz or 15% – owing to an expansion at Mana mine, higher production from Sabodala-Massawa following its recently completed BIOX expansion, and a full year of the newly commissioned Lafigué mine.
AISC is guided to $1,150-1,350/oz.
“As we increase production by up to 15%, maintain stable costs and significantly reduce capex, driving higher free-cash flow generation, our goal is to further increase returns to shareholders this year, through supplemental dividends and an increased commitment to share buybacks,” said Cockerill.