FG
Fortitude Gold Corp (FTCO)·Q3 2025 Earnings Summary
Executive Summary
- Q3 2025 delivered $4.654M net sales, $0.233M net income, and $0.01 diluted EPS, reflecting lower volumes during pit layback and waste removal at Isabella Pearl despite higher realized gold prices; mine gross profit was $2.466M and cash balance ended at $11.724M .
- County Line received all BLM/NDEP approvals, a meaningful de-risking for near‑term production; management targets production from residual leach and initial Pearl deep mineralization as a bridge to County Line ramp-up .
- Costs rose: cash costs after credits were $1,244/oz and AISC spiked to $1,956/oz on lower throughput and development timing; realized gold price averaged $3,444/oz, up q/q and y/y .
- Dividend remains at $0.01/month (reduced from $0.04 in April) with $0.7M paid in Q3 as the company prioritizes funding Pearl deep access and County Line build; finance leases associated with in‑house mining fleet totaled $17.895M YTD .
- Wall Street consensus (S&P Global) was unavailable for Q3 2025 EPS and revenue, limiting beat/miss analysis; management did not issue formal production guidance on the call given permitting dynamics .
What Went Well and What Went Wrong
What Went Well
- County Line fully permitted: “BLM and NDEP approved all permits in September 2025… allows the Company to advance this project into production” .
- Bridge plan to sustain output: “Residual leach coupled with the first Pearl deep mineralization beginning processing in the coming weeks, we target production from both…” .
- Higher realized gold price supports margins: average realized gold price of $3,444/oz in Q3 vs $3,287/oz in Q2 .
What Went Wrong
- Volume decline and higher costs: gold ounces sold fell to 1,376 (from 1,491 in Q2 and 2,336 in Q1), with AISC rising to $1,956/oz (vs $1,452/oz in Q2), compressing profitability .
- Net sales and EPS down sequentially and y/y: revenue dropped to $4.654M (Q2: $4.883M; Q3 2024: $10.229M) and diluted EPS to $0.01 (Q2: $0.03; Q3 2024: $0.04) .
- Cash draw to fund operations and development: cash fell to $11.724M from $17.147M in Q2 and $21.420M in Q1, alongside $5.627M net cash used in financing YTD (dividends and leases) .
Financial Results
Quarterly Progression (oldest → newest)
Year-over-Year (Q3 2024 vs Q3 2025)
Key KPIs (oldest → newest)
Guidance Changes
Earnings Call Themes & Trends
Management Commentary
- “We are excited that the BLM and NDEP approved all permits in September 2025 for our County Line Project, which now allows the Company to advance this project into production.” — Jason Reid, CEO .
- “Mine operations during the third quarter largely focused on removing waste as we advance closer to the deep Isabella Pearl mineralization with the pit layback… we target production from both [residual leach and Pearl deep] as we advance our County Line Project into near‑term production.” — Jason Reid, CEO .
- “This provides us with additional runway to both obtain permits and construct our County Line project for a new ore source for our Isabella Pearl heap leach facility.” — Jason Reid, CEO (Q1) .
Q&A Highlights
- No formal production guidance issued on the call given permitting dynamics; management emphasized near‑term production bridge from residual leach and initial Pearl deep processing .
- CEO Jason Reid led prepared remarks; CFO Janet Turner joined for Q&A per transcript heading (call held Nov 5, 2025, 11:00 AM ET) .
- Discussion highlighted in-house mining transition and heap leach operations; increased use of finance leases aligns with reported lease liabilities and equipment purchases YTD .
Estimates Context
- Wall Street consensus (S&P Global) for Q3 2025 EPS and revenue was unavailable; as a result, we cannot determine a beat/miss versus consensus for this quarter. Values retrieved from S&P Global.*
- Reported actuals: Revenue $4.654M and diluted EPS $0.01 (company filings) .
Key Takeaways for Investors
- County Line permits materially de-risk near-term production expansion; expect construction/operational updates to be a positive catalyst as the project ramps .
- Near-term production remains bridged by residual leach and initial Pearl deep processing; watch throughput and grades as Pearl deep access progresses .
- Costs elevated on lower volumes and development phase; monitor AISC normalization as volumes recover and County Line contributes; current AISC $1,956/oz is a headwind .
- Balance sheet remains equity‑funded with growing lease obligations; cash decreased to $11.724M, and finance lease liabilities total $17.352M, reflecting in‑house fleet strategy .
- Dividend policy remains conservative at $0.01/month to preserve liquidity for project execution; reassessment likely tied to County Line cash flow ramp .
- With consensus unavailable, investor models should rely on company KPIs (ounces, realized price, costs) and project timing; estimate revisions will hinge on Pearl deep ramp efficacy and County Line start-up.
- Narrative shift: permitting wins and execution milestones should drive stock reaction; near‑term cost pressure and lower volumes are offsets until production scales .
Notes:
- Margin percentages are calculated from reported sales and mine gross profit values in company filings **[1828377_0001104659-25-106331_ftco-20251104xex99d1.htm:3]** **[1828377_0001558370-25-010308_ftco-20250805xex99d1.htm:3]** **[1828377_0001558370-25-005862_ftco-20250429xex99d1.htm:2]**.
- S&P Global consensus estimates were unavailable for Q3 2025; Values retrieved from S&P Global.*
References:
- Q3 2025 8-K press release and financials:
- Q2 2025 8-K press release and financials:
- Q1 2025 8-K press release and financials:
- Earnings call transcript sources:
- Company conference call announcement: