FCX Freeport McMoRan Inc

By Imani Moise 

Freeport-McMoRan Inc. swung to a profit for the first time in nearly two years, as the company moves to focus more on its copper business.

The biggest U.S. mining company by market value has been increasing copper production despite weak prices, and it also has been shedding assets to help reduce its debt.

The Phoenix-based company agreed to sell its onshore California oil and gas properties for $592 million in cash earlier this month. Additionally, it agreed to sell its Mexican oil and gas assets for $2 billion in September. Chief Executive Richard Adkerson said Tuesday that the company has announced asset sale transactions totaling $6.6 billion so far this year.

The company said it sold 1.2 billion pounds of copper and 317,000 ounces of gold in the quarter, up from 1 billion pounds and 294,000 ounces, respectively.

In all for the third quarter, Freeport-McMoRan reported a profit of $217 million, or 16 cents a share, compared with a loss of $3.83 billion, or $3.53 a share, a year earlier. The year-earlier period was hurt by $3.65 billion of impairments related to the company's oil and gas properties.

On an adjusted basis for the latest quarter, the company reported earnings of 13 cents, below analysts' views of 18 cents.

Revenue jumped 15% to $3.88 billion.

The profit breaks a streak of seven straight quarterly losses for Freeport-McMoRan, whose shares rose 5.4% to $10.72 in Tuesday morning trading. They are still down 13% in the past three months.

Write to Imani Moise at imani.moise@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

October 25, 2016 11:04 ET (15:04 GMT)

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