The Orica Ltd (ASX: ORI) share price is on watch after a solid full-year results announcement this morning.
What were Orica's operational highlights?
Orica reported its total ammonium nitrate product volumes climbed 4% higher on the prior corresponding period (pcp) to 3.97 megatonnes.
The biggest contributor was the group's Latin America operations, which also helped to boost earnings higher for the year.
Earnings before interest and tax rose (EBIT) 8% to $665 million (FY18: $618 million) with Europe, the Middle East and Africa delivering.
Orica's technology products, GroundProbe and Minova, as well as its improved manufacturing performance, were other strong contributors.
Orica's Australia Pacific and Asia segment experienced strong volume growth with management forecasting even more in FY20.
The company's Burrup plant is scheduled to commence production in 2H 2020 with positive EBIT contributions from that point forward.
In North America, Orica's volumes edged higher on pcp, as growth in Canadian markets offset lower volumes in Mexico stemming from community issues.
What about Orica's financials?
Sales revenue jumped 9% higher on pcp to $5,878 million for the year, in a big plus for shareholders.
Underlying net profit after tax rose 15% to $372 million as the company also delivered a statutory net profit following a loss in FY18.
Orica's return on net assets climbed 100 basis points higher to 13.5% in FY19.
Shareholders will see a 3.5 cents per share (cps) increase in the company's dividend to 55.0 cps (FY18: 51.5 cps).
Strong contributions from Manufacturing (+$15 million), Orica Monitor (+$18 million) and Minova (+$18 million) all helped boost EBIT higher.
How has the Orica share price performed in 2019?
The Orica share price has quietly climbed 35.50% higher so far this year to outpace the S&P/ASX 200 Index (INDEXASX: XJO).
The company's shares are trading close to their 52-week high of $23.89 per share after a strong last quarter.
The company is currently yielding 1.92% and has a market cap of $8.72 billion, which puts it in blue-chip ASX dividend stock territory.
Orica shares are worth watching in early trade following the company's solid full-year FY19 result.
