Cameco Corporation press release
Cameco Reports Third Quarter Results: Year-to-Date Performance as Expected; Nuclear Industry Fundamentals Continue to Strengthen; Disciplined Strategy and Integrated Nuclear Exposure Support Long-term Value Creation; Annual Dividend Declared
TSX - Toronto Stock Exchange · Canada · Corporate Finance
All amounts in Canadian dollars unless specified otherwise
Cameco (TSX: CCO; NYSE: CCJ) today reported its consolidated financial and operating results for the third quarter ended September 30, 2026, in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS).
“We continue to be guided by our disciplined strategy and the strength of our diversified nuclear energy platform,” said Tim Gitzel, Cameco’s CEO. “Results for the quarter and the first nine months of 2026 were lower than the comparable period last year, largely due to a few significant items that affected year-over-year comparisons. We planned a longer maintenance outage at the Key Lake mill this year to undertake projects that are intended to ensure flexibility and sustainable operations, and as we expected, that outage, which began during the third quarter, resulted in lower production volume and higher costs this quarter. Last year, Westinghouse also received a significant payment related to the Dukovany nuclear project in the Czech Republic, so our equity earnings from our investment in Westinghouse for the first nine months of 2026 were lower. As with nearly every industry, we also continue to experience inflationary pressure, while broader market volatility is affecting sentiment. However, it is important to distinguish between changes in market sentiment and changes in underlying fundamentals. In our view, the fundamentals supporting nuclear energy remain stronger than ever. The reactors operating around the world today continue to require fuel; we believe fuel-cycle capacity remains constrained in many parts of the western market, and utilities continue to evaluate their long-term fuel requirements in an increasingly uncertain geopolitical environment. Importantly, our ownership interest in Westinghouse extends our participation across the nuclear value chain, providing exposure to reactor services, operating reactors and future deployment opportunities.
“We are encouraged by the increasing level of engagement we are seeing with customers as utilities continue to assess security of supply, fuel availability and future procurement needs. As we have consistently said, contracting activity is rarely linear and market conditions can influence the pace of utility decision-making, but customer requirements do not disappear. We believe our contract portfolio continues to provide valuable insight into future demand and remains central to how we evaluate opportunities and inform supply and investment decisions across our business.
“At Cameco, our strategy is built on discipline. We pursue disciplined contracting that supports long-term value creation, we use those commitments to inform our supply decisions, and we maintain disciplined financial management when allocating capital. We will not advance production, commit capital or pursue growth simply in response to headlines, short-term price movements or market enthusiasm surrounding any single theme. Instead, we remain focused on risk-adjusted returns, customer commitments and creating sustainable value for our owners over the long term.
“While growing electricity demand associated with artificial intelligence, data centres and the broader technology sector may provide additional upside for nuclear energy, it is important to recognize that our investment thesis does not depend on any single demand driver. The existing reactor fleet, life extensions, restarts, committed new-build activity, energy-security priorities and the need to replace declining supply continue to underpin our long-term outlook today. We believe our combination of proven assets, long-term customer relationships, supply flexibility and integrated exposure across the nuclear value chain provides a resilient foundation through periods of market volatility, and the potential for meaningful upside as nuclear growth continues to unfold. Stronger fundamentals reinforce our confidence in the market and underscore the importance of disciplined execution.”
Third Quarter Highlights
Financial Highlights
Consolidated performance: Third quarter results included net earnings of $43 million, adjusted net loss of $2 million, and adjusted EBITDA of $267 million while results for the first nine months of the year included net earnings of $199 million, adjusted net earnings of $279 million and adjusted EBITDA of $1.2 billion. Results for the quarter and first nine months of the year were generally lower than in 2025, primarily due to lower equity earnings from our investment in Westinghouse, as well as lower sales volumes and higher average unit cost of sales, partially offset by higher average realized prices. See _Consolidated financial results _and _Financial results by segment – Uranium _in the third quarter MD&A for more information. Strong balance sheet: Thanks to our risk-managed financial discipline, our balance sheet remains strong. As of September 30, 2026, we had $860 million in cash and cash equivalents, $1.0 billion in total debt and a $1.0 billion undrawn revolving credit facility. Dividend: Our board of directors declared a 2026 annual dividend of $0.24 per common share, payable on December 15, 2026, to shareholders of record on November 30, 2026. The decision to declare an annual dividend is reviewed regularly by our board in the context of our cash flow, financial position, strategy and other relevant factors, including appropriate alignment with the cyclical nature of our earnings.
Uranium : In our core uranium segment, third quarter earnings before taxes were $175 million and adjusted EBITDA was $179 million compared to $172 million and $220 million, respectively, in 2025, due to our normal quarterly variations in deliveries and our lower planned 2026 sales delivery volumes resulting from our contracting discipline. Earnings before taxes for the first nine months of the year were $703 million and adjusted EBITDA was $855 million, compared to $681 million and $862 million in 2025, respectively. See _Financial results by segment – Uranium _in our third quarter MD&A for more information. Fuel Services : In our Fuel Services segment, third quarter earnings before taxes were $13 million and adjusted EBITDA was $24 million, compared to $17 million and $25 million in 2025, respectively. Earnings before taxes for the first nine months of the year were $87 million while adjusted EBITDA was $120 million, compared to $129 million and $158 million in 2025, respectively, due to our normal variations in the mix of Fuel Services products sold. See _Financial results by segment – Fuel services _in our third quarter MD&A for more information. Westinghouse : Westinghouse reported a net loss of $24 million (our share) for the third quarter, an improvement from a net loss of $32 million (our share) in the third quarter of 2025. Over the first nine months of the year, Westinghouse reported a net loss of $80 million (our share), in comparison to net earnings of $32 million (our share) in the same period in 2025. Equity earnings from our investment in Westinghouse were lower than in 2025 due to Westinghouse’s participation in the construction project for two nuclear reactors at the Dukovany power plant in the Czech Republic, which resulted in an approximate US$170 million increase in our share of Westinghouse’s 2025 second quarter revenue. To better reflect the underlying operating performance, we use adjusted EBITDA as a performance measure for Westinghouse. In the third quarter of 2026, our share of Westinghouse’s adjusted EBITDA was $143 million, compared to $124 million in the third quarter of 2025, while adjusted EBITDA for the first nine months was $427 million, compared to $569 million in 2025. See Financial results by segment - Westinghouse , in our third quarter MD&A for more information.
Adjusted net earnings and adjusted EBITDA are non-IFRS measures.
Operational Highlights
Uranium: At the Key Lake mill, the annual maintenance shutdown began in the third quarter and included the installation of new infrastructure and repairs to major existing infrastructure. As a result of the substantial work, the shutdown was planned to be longer than in previous years and commissioning of the new infrastructure is underway. As we approach the end of the year, we have greater certainty in the timing of uranium production and deliveries. See _Outlook for 2026 _and _Our operations _in our third quarter MD&A for more information. JV Inkai: JV Inkai remains on track to produce 10.4 million pounds of U 3 O 8 (100% basis) in 2026, of which our purchase allocation is expected to be 4.2 million pounds of U 3 O 8 . In the first nine months of the year, we purchased 0.8 million pounds of U 3 O 8 from JV Inkai and following the quarter, a shipment containing approximately 1.6 million pounds of our share of Inkai’s 2026 production was delivered to Blind River. The final shipment of our remaining share of JV Inkai’s 2026 production is currently in transit and expected to arrive at Blind River prior to the end of 2026. See _Our operations- Uranium 2026 Q3 Updates _in our third quarter MD&A for more information. Fuel Services: We continue to expect our annual production, which includes UF 6 conversion, UO 2 conversion and heavy water reactor fuel bundles, to be between 13 million and 14 million kgU. See _Our Operations - Fuel Services 2026 Q3 Updates _in our third quarter MD&A for more information. Westinghouse: In October, Westinghouse announced conditional purchase orders with four Polish suppliers to support the build out of the Polskie Elektrownie Jadrowe’s project and the first AP1000 unit at the Lubiatowo-Kopalino site. Separately, Westinghouse was authorized to begin procuring long-lead nuclear components, helping secure critical supply chain capacity, reduce project execution risk and support the planned development schedule. Also in October, Westinghouse launched a US State Department-funded FEED study for an AP1000 reactor at Slovakia's Jaslovské Bohunice site, advancing engineering, licensing and project planning for the proposed new nuclear plant, supporting the country's energy security objectives.
Marketing highlights
Deliveries and inventory: In the third quarter, we delivered 5.6 million pounds of U 3 O 8 , which is consistent with our sales plan and reflects our normal quarterly delivery variations. With production totaling 3.5 million pounds (our share) and purchases of 1.8 million pounds of uranium (purchased at an average unit cost of $83.78 per pound (US$60.15 per pound)) in the third quarter, our uranium inventory was 8.5 million pounds on September 30, 2026, with an average inventory cost of $58.37 per pound. See _Financial results by segment – Uranium _in our third quarter MD&A for more information. Contracting: In our uranium segment, over the next five years, we have contracts in place for average annual deliveries of over 28 million pounds of U 3 O 8 per year, with commitments higher than the average in 2026 through 2028, and lower than the average in 2029 and 2030. As the market continues to improve, we expect to continue layering in volumes that capture greater future upside using market-related pricing mechanisms.
2026 Outlook Update
Production : We have narrowed our guidance for our expected share of production of U 3 O 8 to be between 19.5 million and 20.5 million pounds (previously 19.5 million to 21.5 million pounds) for 2026, reflecting greater certainty in the timing of uranium production as we approach the end of the year. Sales/delivery volumes : We have narrowed our guidance for the sales/deliveries volumes in our uranium segment to 29.5 to 30.5 million pounds (previously 29 to 32 million pounds) as we have greater confidence in the timing of potential uranium deliveries as we approach the end of the year. Financial metrics: We have updated our guidance for average unit cost of sales, direct administration costs and capital expenditures. See _2026 Outlook _in our third quarter MD&A for more information .
ADDITIONAL HIGHLIGHTS
Westinghouse: In September, the US government, through the Department of Commerce, and the Republic of Korea announced a non-binding framework that anticipates the investment by the Republic of Korea of up to US$120 billion to help finance the buildout of up to eight new large-scale reactors in the US, including six Westinghouse AP1000 reactors. The framework builds upon the 2025 strategic partnership between Cameco, Brookfield and the US government and is subject to definitive agreements and other conditions. In our 2026 second quarter MD&A, we updated the business framework for Westinghouse, replacing the framework that was previously disclosed in our 2025 annual report. We have updated that business framework in our 2026 third quarter MD&A. See _Our Operations - Westinghouse _in our third quarter MD&A for more information
Changes to the executive team: consistent with prudent succession planning and with Cameco’s ongoing commitment to execution of its balanced and disciplined strategy, effective January 1, 2027, the following changes will be made to the executive team: Leah Hipperson will be appointed senior vice-president and chief financial officer, and Heidi Shockey will assume the role of executive director, finance until March 31, 2027, at which time she plans to retire.
With these changes in the senior leadership team, we expect to continue to have the right people in the right positions, with the appropriate experience to help the company achieve its vision of powering a secure energy future.
Consolidated financial results
| | | THREE MONTHS | | NINE MONTHS | | | | | | | | HIGHLIGHTS | ENDED SEPTEMBER 30 | | ENDED SEPTEMBER 30 | | | | | | | | | ($ MILLIONS EXCEPT WHERE INDICATED) | 2026 | | 2025 | CHANGE | 2026 | 2025 | CHANGE | | | | | Revenue | 619 | | 615 | 1 | % | 2,278 | 2,281 | - | | | | Gross profit | 122 | | 170 | (28 | )% | 614 | 697 | (12 | )% | | | Net earnings attributable to equity holders | 43 | | - | >100 | % | 199 | 391 | (49 | )% | | | | $ per common share (basic) | 0.10 | | - | >100 | % | 0.46 | 0.90 | (49 | )% | | | $ per common share (diluted) | 0.10 | | - | >100 | % | 0.46 | 0.90 | (49 | )% | | Adjusted net earnings (loss) (ANE) (non-IFRS) | (2 | ) | 32 | >(100 | )% | 279 | 410 | (32 | )% | | | | $ per common share (adjusted and diluted) | - | | 0.07 | (100 | )% | 0.64 | 0.94 | (32 | )% | | Adjusted EBITDA (non-IFRS) | 267 | | 310 | (14 | )% | 1,166 | 1,338 | (13 | )% | | | Cash provided by operations | 3 | | 156 | (98 | )% | 112 | 731 | (85 | )% | |
The financial information presented for the three months and nine months ended September 30, 2025, and September 30, 2026, is unaudited.
Selected segment highlights
| | | | THREE MONTHS | | NINE MONTHS | | | | | | | HIGHLIGHTS | ENDED SEPTEMBER 30 | | ENDED SEPTEMBER 30 | | | | | | | | | ($ MILLIONS EXCEPT WHERE INDICATED) | 2026 | 2025 | CHANGE | 2026 | 2025 | CHANGE | | | | | | Uranium | Production volume (million lb) | | 3.5 | 4.4 | (20 | )% | 13.6 | 15.0 | (9 | )% | | | Sales volume (million lb) | | 5.6 | 6.1 | (8 | )% | 20.5 | 21.8 | (6 | )% | | | Average realized price 1 | (US$/lb) | 65.78 | 62.12 | 6 | % | 66.64 | 60.35 | 10 | % | | | | ($/lb) | 91.76 | 85.22 | 8 | % | 92.05 | 84.79 | 9 | % | | | Revenue | | 518 | 523 | (1 | )% | 1,888 | 1,847 | 2 | % | | | Gross profit | | 111 | 158 | (30 | )% | 527 | 578 | (9 | )% | | | Earnings before income taxes | 175 | 172 | 2 | % | 703 | 681 | 3 | % | | | | Adjusted EBITDA 2 | | 179 | 220 | (19 | )% | 855 | 862 | (1 | )% | | Fuel services | Production volume (million kgU) | | 3.2 | 3.1 | 3 | % | 9.5 | 10.2 | (7 | )% | | | Sales volume (million kgU) | | 2.2 | 1.9 | 16 | % | 8.6 | 8.6 | >100% | | | | Average realized price 3 | ($Cdn/kgU) | 42.90 | 49.11 | (13 | )% | 44.18 | 44.91 | (2 | )% | | | Revenue | | 95 | 91 | 4 | % | 381 | 388 | (2 | )% | | | Earnings before income taxes | 13 | 17 | (24 | )% | 87 | 129 | (33 | )% | | | | Adjusted EBITDA 2 | | 24 | 25 | (4 | )% | 120 | 158 | (24 | )% | | | Adjusted EBITDA margin (%) 2 | | 25 | 27 | (7 | )% | 31 | 41 | (24 | )% | | (our share) | Depreciation and amortization | | 99 | 94 | 5 | % | 291 | 285 | 2 | % | | | Adjusted EBITDA 2 | | 143 | 124 | 15 | % | 427 | 569 | (25 | )% |
| 1 | Uranium average realized price is calculated as the revenue from sales of uranium concentrate, transportation and storage fees divided by the volume of uranium concentrates sold. | | 2 | Non-IFRS measure | | 3 | Fuel services average realized price is calculated as revenue from the sale of conversion and fabrication services, including fuel bundles and reactor components, transportation and storage fees divided by the volumes sold. |
The table below shows the costs of produced and purchased uranium incurred in the reporting periods (see non-IFRS measures). These costs do not include care and maintenance costs, maintenance and operational outage costs, selling costs such as royalties, transportation and commissions, nor do they reflect the impact of opening inventories on our reported cost of sales.
| | | THREE MONTHS | | NINE MONTHS | | | | | | | | | ENDED SEPTEMBER 30 | | ENDED SEPTEMBER 30 | | | | | | | ($/LB) | 2026 | 2025 | CHANGE | 2026 | 2025 | CHANGE | | | | | Produced | | | | | | | | | | | | Cash cost | 40.73 | 25.20 | 62 | % | 29.70 | 24.39 | 22 | % | | | Non-cash cost | 16.67 | 11.16 | 49 | % | 12.47 | 10.98 | 14 | % | | | Total production cost 1 | 57.40 | 36.36 | 58 | % | 42.17 | 35.37 | 19 | % | | | Quantity produced (million lb) 1 | 3.5 | 4.4 | (20 | )% | 13.6 | 15.0 | (9 | )% | | Purchased | | | | | | | | | | | | Cash cost | 83.78 | 82.51 | 2 | % | 89.29 | 94.04 | (5 | )% | | | Quantity purchased (million lb) 1,2 | 1.8 | 1.4 | 29 | % | 4.9 | 3.3 | 48 | % | | Totals | | | | | | | | | | | | Produced and purchased costs | 66.36 | 47.50 | 40 | % | 54.65 | 45.95 | 19 | % | | | Quantities produced and purchased (million lb) | 5.3 | 5.8 | (9 | )% | 18.5 | 18.3 | 1 | % |
| 1 | Due to equity accounting, our share of production from JV Inkai is shown as a purchase at the time of delivery. These purchases will fluctuate during the quarters and timing of purchases will not match production. There were no purchases from JV Inkai during the third quarter. In the first nine months of 2026, we purchased 800,000 pounds and had weight adjustments from prior year deliveries for approximately 200,000 pounds for a total of 1 million pounds at a purchase price per pound of $111.83 (US$81.45). | | 2 | In the third quarter and for the first nine months of 2025, we purchased 100,000 pounds at a purchase price per pound of $100.81 (US$73.05). |
Non-IFRS measures
The non-IFRS measures referenced in this document are supplemental measures, which are used as indicators of our financial performance. Management believes that these non-IFRS measures provide useful supplemental information to investors, securities analysts, lenders and other interested parties in assessing our operational performance and our ability to generate cash flows to meet our cash requirements. These measures are not recognized measures under IFRS, do not have standardized meanings, and are therefore unlikely to be comparable to similarly titled measures presented by other companies. Accordingly, these measures should not be considered in isolation or as a substitute for the financial information reported under IFRS. We are not able to reconcile our forward-looking non-IFRS guidance because we cannot predict the timing and amounts of discrete items, which could significantly impact our IFRS results.
The following are the non-IFRS measures used in this document.
ADJUSTED NET EARNINGS
Adjusted net earnings (ANE) is our net earnings attributable to equity holders, adjusted for non-operating or non-cash items such as gains and losses on derivatives, unrealized foreign exchange gains and losses, share-based compensation, adjustments to reclamation provisions flowing through other operating expenses, and bargain purchase gains, that we believe do not reflect the underlying financial performance for the reporting period. Other items may also be adjusted from time to time. We adjust this measure for certain of the items that our equity-accounted investees make in arriving at other non-IFRS measures. Adjusted net earnings is one of the targets that we measure to form the basis for a portion of annual employee and executive compensation (see _Measuring our results _in our 2025 annual MD&A).
Earlier from Cameco Corporation
- Cameco Acknowledges United States and Republic of Korea Announcement of Framework for the Deployment of Nuclear Power
- PURECORE COMMENCES DATA COMPILATION AND TARGET GENERATION AT YURCHISON URANIUM PROPERTY
- Cameco Reports Second Quarter Results: Year-to-Date Performance on Track; Production Outlook Unchanged; Strategically Positioned Across the Nuclear Fuel Cycle; Significant Support for Nuclear Energy Reinforces Stronger Long-Term Uranium Prices
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