NST, EVN, NCM, and PRU: ASX gold stocks on investors’ radar

Highlights:

• Gold price has recovered recently; in a month, it has increased by approximately 4%.
• The rebound in the gold prices has put gold stocks on the investors’ radar, as it provides a safe place during economic uncertainty.
• NST, EVN, NCM, and PRU are the top Australian gold stocks that are always in news for various reasons.

The global economy is under pressure as the worry around the recession persists. Stock markets are trading under the concern that the Federal Reserve would increase the interest rate once again in September.

Gold likely becomes a lucrative investment during economic uncertainty as it protects the investor’s purchasing power. 

Today (17 August 2022), gold was trading at US$1777.26 per ton ounce, up by 0.10% during mid-day. In a month, the prices of gold have surged by 3.98%. The effect of the gold price recovery can be observed in the monthly movement of the ASX 200 Materials sector (INDEXASX:XMJ), which gained around 12%. 

Worth mentioning here is that the surge in gold prices is not solely responsible for the monthly rise in the Australian materials sector.

Meanwhile, the Australian stock market was quite volatile today. It opened at flat 7,105.40, reported a small dip and then headed north. ASX 200 closed 0.31% higher from previous close at 7,127.70. 

On Wednesday, 6 out of 11 ASX sectors were in green. The materials sector (INDEXASX:XMJ) featured among the positively performing sector.

This piece discusses ASX-listed gold stocks, Northern Star Resources, Evolution Mining, Newcrest Mining, and Perseus Mining.

Northern Star Resources Limited (ASX:NST)

Gold explorer and producer, Northern Star’s projects are in regions of North America and Australia. The company manages a portfolio of open pit, high-margin underground and high-quality gold mines. 

Three gold production centres of Northern Star are Pogo, Yandal and Kalgoorlie, situated at world-class locations. 

Image source: © Skypixel | Megapixl.com

Recently, the company shared the June quarterly report for the financial year 2022 (FY22). Despite the challenging operational environment, the company sold 402koz of gold at an AISC of AU$1,650 per ounce. The company sold 1,561koz of gold in the full year at an AISC of AU$1,633 per ounce. 

The yearly gold production was in line with the guidance of 1,550 to 1650koz at an AISC of AU$1600 to 1640 per ounce.

All the production centres met the production guidance.

For FY23, Northern star said it would closely manage its cost in the inflationary environment. The bullion company has entered FY23 with a strong financial position with AU$528 million net cash. Moreover, the growth programs for the year are fully funded.

For FY23, the company expects to deliver 1560koz to 1680koz of gold at an AISC of AU$1630 to 1690 per ounce. The sales are expected to be higher towards the second half because of Thunderbox mill expansion.   

Northern Star shares closed tad down at AU$8.100 per share.

Evolution Mining Limited (ASX:EVN)

Gold miner, Evolution Mining operates five mines across New South Wales, Western Australia, Queensland and Canada. According to the company’s official website, in FY22, Evolution was the lowest cost producer globally. The company produced 640,275 ounces of gold in the full year at an AISC of AU$1,259 per ounce. 

During the year, the mineral resources increased by 74% to 26.4 million ounces, and ore reserves increased by 49% to 9.9 million ounces. The company delivered a record statutory net profit after tax of AU$345.3 million. 

Evolution Mining expects gold production to increase by 25% in the next two years. The AISC guidance for the coming two years is AU$1,240 per ounce, maintaining the low-cost position of the organization.

The shares of Evolution Mining last traded at AU$2.69 per share on ASX. This gold stock has fallen by 32.53% in a year.

Newcrest Mining Limited (ASX:NCM)

One of the world’s largest gold miner, Newcrest, is headquartered in Melbourne, Australia, with operations in Papua New Guinea, Canada and Australia. 

The gold producer operates a portfolio of long-life, low-cost mines and a strong greenfield and brownfield projects pipeline. Reportedly, the resource and reserve base of the company is strong, with the reserves having over 24 years of production at the existing rates.

Recently, the company shared its June quarterly results along with the FY22 gold production metrics. 

Reportedly, the company achieved its gold production guidance for the year with the 1956koz of gold production at an AISC of AU$1,044 per ounce. The company informed the shareholders that the Brucejack program is going on well, and various initiatives are underway to uplift the long-term potential of the program. 

For the financial year 2023, Newcrest said it would continue to progress the pipeline of organic growth projects with a focus on superior operational performance. The FY23 guidance is expected to be released along with the FY22 results. According to the Newcrest release, FY22 results are expected on 19 August 2022.

The shares of Newcrest closed at AU$19.220 per share. with this, the shares fell by 24% in a year.

Perseus Mining Limited (ASX:PRU)

Image source: © Petrovich11 | Megapixl.com

A growing African gold explorer, developer and producer, Perseus Mining manages three gold mines located in Africa, namely, Edikan, Sissingué and Yaouré. The company's official website mentioned that it is on track to achieve gold production of 500,000oz annually by 2022.

However, according to the June quarterly report released on ASX, the company reported FY22 gold production of 494,014 ounces. The target was affected because of the 19-day shut at Edikan during the last quarter.

The weighted average AISC was US$952 per ounce. The full-year gold sales were 481,075 ounces. The company entered the FY23 with a cash and bullion balance of US$328 million and net cash of US$278 million.

The Perseus quarterly update does not talk about the guidance for FY23.

Today, shares of Perseus Mining closed at AU$1.74 apiece. With this, the share price increased by 17.355 in a year.