Potash Corp. of Saskatchewan Inc. said Jan. 26 that its earnings for the year ending Dec. 31, 2011, were the second highest in history. Net income was $3.08 billion ($3.51 per diluted share) on sales of $8.71 billion, up from the prior year $1.77 billion ($1.95 per share) on sales of $6.53 billion.
Fourth quarter net income was up at $683 million ($.78 per share) on sales of $1.86 billion, compared to the year-ago $508 million ($.56 per share) on sales of $1.81 billion.
PotashCorp said it believes that any short-term challenges the industry may be facing do not change the powerful drivers of its business. “The return on fertilizer investment continues to be attractive to farmers world-wide and is expected to result in greater demand in the quarters ahead,” said PotashCorp President and CEO Bill Doyle.
In other news, on Jan. 25, PotashCorp announced that it is doubling its dividend. The company’s board has approved an increase of the company’s quarterly cash dividend (from $0.07 per share to $0.14 per share), and declared a quarterly cash dividend of US $0.14 per common share payable May 3, 2012 to shareholders of record on April 12, 2012.
“In addition to using our strong cash flow to grow our world-class fertilizer business, we have a proven track record of returning capital to our shareholders”, said Doyle. “This announcement to double the dividend – the second time in the past year – reflects the confidence we have in the drivers of our business and our commitment to creating superior long-term shareholder value.”