Sydney, Jan 8, 2026, 16:51 AEDT — After-hours
- Northern Star ended down 3% after a weak quarter kept broker caution in play.
- UBS trimmed its price target but kept a buy call, pointing to a production miss and tighter cash-flow math.
- Investors now look to Jan. 22 for the miner’s full quarterly numbers and revised cost guidance.
Northern Star Resources Ltd shares ended down 3% at A$24.60 on Thursday, after trading between A$24.57 and A$25.08. The stock is still up about 56% over the past year.
The slide came as UBS analyst Levi Spry trimmed his price target to A$29.45 from A$29.75 while keeping a buy rating, after the miner’s December-quarter output came in below expectations. UBS said production was 348,000 ounces, about 11% under its estimate, and noted the company cut fiscal 2026 guidance to 1.6 million-1.7 million ounces; UBS also lowered its own FY26 estimate to 1.57 million ounces and cut FY26 earnings-per-share forecasts by 14%.
That matters now because investors are trying to judge whether the stumble is a one-off or the start of a rougher run across Northern Star’s main hubs. Simply Wall St said equipment failures and outages at Kalgoorlie, Jundee and Pogo helped drive the weaker quarter and the guidance trim.
A filing dated Jan. 7 showed the company issued 95,284 unquoted performance rights under an employee incentive plan, with the notice indicating some grants went to key management personnel.
Another Jan. 7 filing showed 138,237 performance rights lapsed after employment cessations during the quarter ended Dec. 31.
Gold prices also eased, cutting some of the tailwind that has lifted miners in recent months. Spot gold slipped 0.3% and Bernard Sin, regional director for Greater China at MKS PAMP, said traders were “weighing heightened geopolitical tensions… against macroeconomic signals” ahead of U.S. payrolls data due on Friday. Reuters
The broader Australian market finished higher, but the raw materials sector was the only one to end lower as profit-taking hit miners after recent gains.
