Rio Tinto to Pay Its Highest-Ever Dividend After Posting Record Profit

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Rio Tinto

‘s earnings for 2021 jumped 72% as prices of commodities soared and the world’s second-largest miner said it would reward shareholders with its highest-ever dividend.

Rio Tinto (ticker: RIO) posted underlying earnings of about $21.4 billion, up 72% from a year earlier. The earnings, a record, were mostly in line with analysts’ estimates. Revenue in the quarter of $63.5 billion rose 42% from a year earlier.

The company said it would pay a total dividend for the year of $10.40 a share, including a special dividend of $2.47, representing a 79% payout of underlying earnings. The dividend totaled $7.7 billion.

“The recovery of the global economy, driven by industrial production, resulted in significant price strength for our major commodities, which we were able to capture, achieving record financial results with free cash flow of $17.7 billion andunderlying earnings of $21.4 billion,” said Chief Executive Jakob Stausholm.

Rio Tinto is the world’s top iron-ore producer. It benefited last year from record iron-ore prices.

The company left its production guidance mostly unchanged, but noted it was feeling the effects of higher inflation and a rebound in energy prices.

U.S.-listed shares of Rio Tinto rose 0.3% to $78.03. The stock edged 0.3% lower in London.

Write to Joe Woelfel at [email protected]