The highly sought after metal was soaring at levels just below US$2000 an ounce. However, with several macroeconomic factors affecting gold prices, there has been a lot of pressure on the most valuable commodity in the world. With everything that is happening globally and the pandemic reaching peak levels in most countries, the gold price will always take centre stage.
After a few weeks of consolidation, Gold prices are again on the upward trajectory gaining 3.71% in the past month. Currently, gold trades for about US$1791 an ounce on the back of a fairly flat week.
The ASX as all Aussies know is blessed with some of the biggest and best Gold mining companies. After being caught in a downward momentum, these gold stocks are recovering and it looks like a brilliant time to pick up a few gold stocks for your portfolio as demand for the commodity in the short to medium term is very robust.
Our List of Top Gold Stocks in ASX
Newcrest Mining Limited (ASX: NCM)
Newcrest is the largest gold miner in Australia and the 6th largest in the world. They produced 2.2 Moz of gold in FY2020 – greater than the target that Northern Star are aspiring to achieve. owns and operates mines and projects located in Cadia and Telfer, Australia; and Lihir, Papua New Guinea. It also holds 70% interest in the Red Chris mine project located in British Columbia, Canada.
Newcrest’s largest asset is Cadia, and Cadia still has over 15 years of high production under its belt and totally about 37m ounces of gold left in reserves. They have expansion projects that are currently in progress at Cadia and Lihir, and several other exploration projects in the pipeline that can significantly increase their production.
The firm has also altered their dividend policy. This change in policy allows shareholders to benefit from the stronger free cash flows that result from higher gold prices and is supported by Newcrest’s robust balance sheet with its minimal near-term debt obligations. While Newcrest is by no means a dividend stock, a sustainable increase in dividends underpinned by high gold prices for a couple of years is an added benefit to shareholders.
Northern Star Resources (ASX: NST)
Northern Star is the second largest gold miner in Australia. After its recent merger with Saracen wherein NST acquired 100% of Saracen, Northern Star has grown further in stature. They are a proven performer with data going back years to back up their operation and mining capabilities.
Northern Star Resources has a very simple business model – they operate 3 large-scale production centres while striving to hit the 2Moz per annum production capacity. Collectively, with three Tier-1 assets in Tier-1 locations, Northern Star Resources looks exceptionally strong. Northern Star is running a growing business that has falling costs and expanding margins. The firm is targeting a 30% growth in production in the next 3 years alone. They have 3.2 Moz in surface stockpiles and a further M&As to expand further are definitely on the cards.
Evolution Mining (ASX: EVN)
Evolution Mining operates five 100% owned gold mines – Cowal in New South Wales, Mt Carlton and Mt Rawdon in Queensland, Mungari in Western Australia, and Red Lake in Ontario, Canada. Along with gold, EVN also explores for silver and copper deposits.
Evolution reported a 29% growth in revenues in FY2020. They have a 3 point plan in place that should deliver significant growth to the firm. Production is planned to increase to over 800,000 ounces during the three-year period to FY2023. Growth is expected to be driven by the initiation of the Cowal underground mine in late FY2022 and execution of the Red Lake transformation plan.
The company has declared a final, fully franked FY2020 dividend of 9 cents per share, amounting to $153.4 million. This results in a record full-year dividend for FY20 of 16 cents per share, fully franked, which equates to a 68% increase over FY2019. Coming in with a fully franked annual dividend yield of 3.38%, Evolution Mining fits into most growth and dividend portfolios.
Looking for Gold Stocks?
Our analysts have analysed and presented their investment case on all of the above three gold stocks. With several macroeconomic factors supporting gold prices in the short and medium term, it is a great time to add some of the top gold mining companies on the ASX at prices that are relatively cheap.
Find out the Top 5 ASX Stocks that our analysts at Shares in Value are recommending long-term investors. You can click here to download the report for free. All it takes is a few seconds!
