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Compass Minerals Intl Inc (CMP+1.41%) has submitted its 10-Q filing for the quarterly period ended December 31, 2024.
The filing includes financial statements for the quarter, showing a decrease in total sales to $307.2 million from $341.7 million in the same quarter the previous year. The decrease is attributed to lower sales in the Salt segment, partially offset by increased sales in the Plant Nutrition segment.
Operating earnings for the quarter were $0.5 million, an improvement from an operating loss of $53.6 million in the previous year. This change is primarily due to a prior-year lithium asset impairment and reduced corporate SG&A expenses.
The company reported a net loss of $23.6 million for the quarter, compared to a net loss of $75.3 million in the previous year. Diluted net loss per common share was $0.57, compared to $1.83 in the prior year.
Gross profit decreased by 52% to $34.3 million, with the gross margin declining by 10 percentage points to 11%. The decline in gross profit is attributed to lower sales volumes and higher per-unit product costs in the Salt segment.
Selling, general, and administrative expenses decreased to $33.3 million from $45.7 million, primarily due to lower corporate incentive compensation and reduced expenses related to lithium and Fortress.
Interest expense increased by $1.0 million to $16.9 million, due to higher interest rates and debt levels. The company recorded a foreign exchange gain of $5.2 million, compared to a loss of $1.9 million in the previous year.
The effective tax rate for the quarter was (70%), influenced by income mix by country and a valuation allowance against U.S. tax benefit carryforward.
In the Salt segment, sales decreased by 12% to $242.2 million, driven by lower sales volumes, partially offset by higher average sales prices for consumer and industrial products. Operating earnings in the Salt segment fell by 42% to $29.4 million.
The Plant Nutrition segment saw a 24% increase in sales to $61.4 million, due to higher sales volumes, despite a decrease in average sales prices. The segment reported an operating loss of $3.1 million.
Compass Minerals expects Salt segment sales volumes to increase by approximately 7% year over year in fiscal 2025, with sales volumes ranging from 9.4 million to 10.5 million tons. The Plant Nutrition segment sales volumes are expected to range from 295,000 to 315,000 tons.
The company plans capital expenditures of $75 million to $85 million for fiscal 2025. As of December 31, 2024, Compass Minerals had $126.3 million in liquidity, including $45.8 million in cash and $80.5 million available under its revolving credit facility.
This content was summarized by generative artificial intelligence using public filings retrieved from SEC.gov. The original data was derived from the Compass Minerals Intl Inc quarterly 10-Q report dated February 10, 2025. To report an error, please email earnings@qz.com.