11:25 AM EDT, 03/27/2025 (MT Newswires) -- (Adds comment and updates shares.)

Hudbay Minerals ( HBM ) on Thursday said it consolidated its ownership of the Copper Mountain mine in British Columbia, agreeing to acquire Mitsubishi Materials' 25% stake in the mine for US$4.5 million up front and US$39.75 million in deferred payments.

Hudbay will also settle the mine's outstanding obligations, including an intercompany loan owing to Hudbay, of which 25% represents approximately US$104 million.

"This transaction simplifies the ownership structure of Copper Mountain and provides Hudbay with greater exposure to the mine without adversely impacting our balance sheet," said chief executive Peter Kukielski.

Separately, Hudbay provided its three-year production outlook. The company expects to produce an average of 144,000 tonnes per year over the next three years, increasing to 161,000 tonnes in 2027 driven by optimization efforts at Copper Mountain. Hudbay also aims to produce 253,000 ounces per year of gold over the next three years.

The company also released its annual reserves and resources update, including proven and probable reserves of 517-million tonnes grading 0.249% copper at the Constancia operation in Peru.

Meanwhile, positive initial step out drilling at Hudbay's Snow Lake project in Canada intersected significant copper-gold mineralization, including 14.3% copper over 2.5 meters and 8.3 grams per tonne gold over 3.2 meters.

"We will continue to deliver meaningful free cash flow generation from our diversified operating platform, which together with our strengthened balance sheet, will allow us to advance our unique copper growth pipeline and unlock significant value for stakeholders," Kukielski said.

National Bank of Canada maintained its outperform rating on Hudbay and it $15.50 price target following the release.

National Bank said the rating is supported by a stable near-term operating outlook, peer-leading leverage to gold prices, upcoming catalysts at Copper World and a discounted valuation. The bank added that it continues to view Hudbay as one of its top picks within its base metals coverage.

Hudbay shares were last seen up $0.05 to $11.53 on the Toronto Stock Exchange.

Price: 11.53, Change: +0.05, Percent Change: +0.44