Great Northern Iron Ore Properties Trust Reports Operating Results (10-Q)

Author's Avatar
Oct 27, 2009
Great Northern Iron Ore Properties Trust (GNI, Financial) filed Quarterly Report for the period ended 2009-09-30.

Great Northern Iron Ore Properties owns interests in fee mineral and nonmineral lands on the Mesabi Iron Range of Minnesota. Income is derived through royalties on iron ore minerals taken from these properties by lessees. They are presently involved solely with the leasing and care of these properties. Great Northern Iron Ore Properties Trust has a market cap of $137.3 million; its shares were traded at around $91.552 with a P/E ratio of 6.8 and P/S ratio of 6.6. The dividend yield of Great Northern Iron Ore Properties Trust stocks is 7.9%. Great Northern Iron Ore Properties Trust had an annual average earning growth of 5.7% over the past 10 years.

Highlight of Business Operations:

We have previously provided information in our various Securities and Exchange Commission filings, including our Annual Report, about the final distribution payable to the certificate holders upon the Trusts termination. The exact final distribution, though not determinable at this time, will generally consist of the sum of the Trusts net monies (essentially, total assets less liabilities and properties) and the balance in the Principal Charges account, less any and all expenses and obligations of the Trust upon termination. To offer a hypothetical example, without factoring in any expenses and obligations of the Trust upon its termination, and using the financial statement values as of December 31, 2008, the net monies were approximately $7,345,000 and the Principal Charges account balance was approximately $4,962,000, resulting in a final distribution payable of approximately $12,307,000, or about $8.20 per share. After payment of this final distribution, the certificates of beneficial interest (shares) would be cancelled and have no further value. It is important to note, however, that the actual net monies on hand and the Principal Charges account balance will most likely fluctuate during the ensuing years and will not be final until after the termination and wind-down of the Trust. The Trust offers this example to further inform investors about the conceptual nature of the final distribution and does not imply or guarantee a specific known final distribution amount.

Royalties decreased $2,030,267 and $4,976,541 during the nine months and three months ended September 30, 2009, respectively, as compared to the same periods in 2008, due mainly to less taconite tonnage mined from Trust lands, a result of reduced operating activities at our lessees taconite facilities.

Interest and other income decreased $110,887 and $9,016 during the nine months and three months ended September 30, 2009, respectively, as compared to the same periods in 2008, due mainly to reduced yields on the Trusts investments.

Costs and expenses increased $166,836 during the nine months ended September 30, 2009, as compared to the same period in 2008, due mainly to increased pension expense. Costs and expenses decreased $182,098 during the three months ended September 30, 2009, as compared to the same period in 2008, due mainly to the implementation of mineral land amortization in the third quarter of 2008.

At their meeting held on September 18, 2009, the Trustees declared a distribution of $1.80 per share, amounting to $2,700,000 payable October 30, 2009, to certificate holders of record at the close of business on September 30, 2009. The Trustees have now declared three quarterly distributions in 2009. The first, in the amount of $1.80 per share, was paid on April 30, 2009 to certificate holders of record on March 31, 2009; the second, in the amount of $1.80 per share, was paid on July 31, 2009 to certificate holders of record on June 30, 2009; and the third, that being the current distribution. The first, second and third quarter 2008 distributions were $2.00, $2.10 and $3.10 per share, respectively. The Trustees intend to continue quarterly distributions and set the record date as of the last business day of each quarter. The next distribution will be paid in late January 2010 to certificate holders of record on December 31, 2009.

Read the The complete Report