Liontown Resources shares plunge amid ‘weak financial performance’
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More news: Shares in Liontown Resources fell in morning trade after the lithium producer posted a 29% fall in revenue.
At 12:15pm AEDT, shares in Liontown Resources had fallen 11.6% to $1.07 as the broader materials sector fell 2.2%.
Jarden analysts described the quarterly result as “mixed” as a strong operating performance was offset by a “weak financial performance”. While revenue, unit cost and production volumes were better than Jarden had expected, the average realised price missed their expectations by 14%.
They also flagged that the realised price of USD700 ($1,067) per tonne of spodumene was “well below” the USD841 per tonne reported by Pilbara Minerals over the same period owing to timing of sales and contracts that referenced “cyclical low prices during May and June”.
The analysts also noted that operational cashflow “was a significant miss” with an outflow of $44 million, compared to the expected $16 million outflow. While cash balance increased to $420 million, it “would have declined by about $93 million over the quarter in the absence of the equity issuance”.
Liontown Resources revenue falls 29% in first quarter
The news: Lithium miner Liontown Resources posted a 29% quarter-on-quarter decline in revenue due to lower shipping volumes from port congestion and backward-looking pricing.
The numbers: Revenue for the first quarter of FY26 was $68 million, a fall from the $96 million in Q4 of FY25. Averaged realised price also fell by 5% over the period to USD700 ($1,067) per dry metric tonne (dmt) of spodumene from USD740.
All-in sustaining cost lifted 10% to $1,354 per dmt sold, but this is expected to “trend lower as throughout, recoveries and operating efficiency improve through FY26”.
Spodumene concentrate production lifted by 1% during the quarter from 85,892 dmt to 87,172 although sales fell by 20% from 97,330 to 77,474.
Cash holdings increased from $156 million to $420 million following completion of the equity placement, which included a $50 million commitment through the National Reconstruction Fund, and after a deferral of the first repayment of a loan to the Ford Motor Company.
The context: Liontown said the ramp up of its underground mining operations is “rapidly scaling and on track”, with ore mined increasing by 105% over the quarter. The company expects to achieve 1.5 mega tonnes per annum by Q3 FY26.
The company also said it is on track to complete open pit mining by the December quarter and “transition fully to underground operations”.
The sources: ASX, Jarden research
