Tag: ORI

Shareholders in explosives maker and mining equipment group, Orica will see a small lift in dividend for the six months to March 31, but it will not restore the interim payout to the 40 cents a share it was two years ago.

Shares in the world’s biggest explosives maker, Orica (ORI), slumped yesterday after the company revealed a 33% slide in interim profit and chopped its dividend by nearly 50%.

An unchanged dividend after a big write-down and fall in underlying profit is always a far better indicator of the way the board and management sees the outlook for a company, especially a major group like Orica (ORI), the big explosives and mining services group which has had a 2015 to forget.

Former Orica (ORI) chief executive Malcolm Broomhead will return to the company in 2016 as its chairman from the start of the New Year.

Explosives and mining services group Orica (ORI) yesterday bowed to the inevitable and made acting CEO and former board director Alberto Calderon the company’s full time leader to replace Ian Smith who left in somewhat clouded circumstances in March.

Explosives giant Orica (ORI) has downgraded its profit guidance, raised the possibility of cutting ammonium nitrate output as an oversupply situation looms, reported a drop in half year profit and told shareholders they will get a steady interim dividend for the six months to March.

Orica (ORI) has been forced to again sort out a mess of its own making about the CEO’s role, five days after revealing the incumbent Ian Smith was going because of problems with staff relations.

Orica (ORI) shares shed more than 5% in value, or more than $370 million after CEO Ian Smith’s departure was surprisingly revealed – with a news-making set of claims around that decision which involve a senior female executive.

Shares in mining services group Orica (ORI) jumped 4% yesterday on the long awaited confirmation that it had completed the sale of its weakly performing chemicals business and will run a share buyback of up to $400 million.

Explosives giant Orica (ORI) has finalised the sale of its troubled chemicals business, and will cut 700 other jobs as part of a cost-cutting drive after it yesterday reported weak results for the year to September 30.

Even though the market had previously given a cautious thumbs up to the idea, it was far more circumspect yesterday when Orica (ORI) firmed up the idea of the getting rid of its chemicals business.

Orica’s (ORI) dip in interim earnings wasn’t a big deal – otherwise why would have the company lifted the dividend 3% to 40c a share?

While outgoing Orica (ORI) chairman Peter Duncan told shareholders at his last annual meeting yesterday of his "disappointment" over the group’s first fall in underlying profit in 12 years in 2012-13, he and CEO Ian Smith also told the meeting that the company is looking to correct that via a review of its non-mining chemical businesses – a move that includes quitting them.

Chemicals and explosives group, Orica (ORI), shares surged more than 10% in yesterday’s up/down market after the company reported a better than expected 2012-13 profit and a small lift in dividend.

Judging by the solid market reaction yesterday, the market (including analysts), got the Orica performance wrong in the year to September 30.

Mining services and explosives group, Orica withstood the impact of floods and bad weather in Australia and the US and the stronger dollar to report an improved profit performance in the six months to March 31.

Orica shares shook off soft revenue figures, thanks to the stronger Australian dollar, and a modest improvement in profit to push higher yesterday after the group’s 2010 full year figures were revealed.

All being well, the Orica spin-off, DuluxGroup, should start trading as a separate listed company around June 12.

Yum went the market yesterday after Orica returned to the task of floating off its consumer paint and garden products business, while reporting a reasonably solid interim result for the 2010 financial year.

The explosives, paint and chemicals supplier Orica says its March 31 interim results will be adversely impacted by the continuing cost of cleaning up at its highly polluted site at Botany in Sydney.

The market gave a thumbs down to Orica’s interim result, even thought it seemed reasonable.

The world's largest explosives company Orica (ORI), announced today that trading in the first two months of fiscal 2008 was comfortably ahead of the same period last year and the company is now looking to expand into China.

In yesterday's choppy market, Orica was punished, despite producing reasonable earnings for 2007 and expectations of better for the year ahead.

Orica shares regained the $32 mark yesterday, two days after they were sold off in the wake of the strong first half profit announcement as investors took profits held since the private equity offer a couple of weeks ago.

Orica (ORI) showed why a private equity buyout group thought it was a steal at $32 a share and why it remains good value at prices above that.