The Newmont Corp (ASX: NEM) share price is charging higher today.
Shares in the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) gold stock closed yesterday trading for $71.40. At the time of writing, around midday Thursday, shares are changing hands for $73.10 apiece, up 2.38%. Newmont shares also smashed a new all-time high of $73.97 during earlier morning trade.
For some context, the ASX 200 is down 0.89% at this same time.
As you can see on the above chart, Newmont shares first began trading on the ASX on 27 October 2023, having previously only traded on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE). That came after the American gold giant acquired ASX 200 gold stock Newcrest Mining in April last year.
Here's what's capturing investor interest today.
Image source: Getty Images
Newmont share price lifts off on strong quarter
Investors are bidding up the Newmont share price following the release of the miner's quarterly update for the three months ending 30 June.
Over the three months, Newmont produced 1.6 million attributable ounces of gold along with 477,000 gold equivalent ounces. Those are primarily comprised of copper, silver, lead and zinc. The ASX 200 miner produced 38,000 tonnes of copper over the quarter.
The miner generated $1.4 billion of cash from its operating activities, which was net of working capital charges of $263 million. The company reported $594 million in free cash flow.
Net income for the quarter came out to $857 million, with earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) of $2.0 billion.
Nominal debt was reduced by $250 million for a cash cost of $227 million.
The Newmont share price is also likely catching some tailwinds after management declared a 25 cent per share unfranked dividend. The miner said it had delivered $539 million in total returns to shareholders over the June quarter through share repurchases and dividend payments.
Newmont is on track to meet its 2024 guidance for production, costs and capital spend. The miner expects an uptick in production in the second half of the year, weighted towards the fourth quarter.
The company also said it expects to achieve at least $2 billion in gross divestiture proceeds from a range of high-quality, non-core assets.
Foolish takeaway
With today's intraday moves factored in, the Newmont share price is up just over 20% so far in 2024.
So, is it too late to buy this ASX 200 gold stock?
Well, as I covered earlier this week, the gold price has been smashing new highs due to rising geopolitical uncertainty and the recent turmoil surrounding the upcoming US presidential elections.
And some experts don't see an end to this any time soon, with many large US hedge funds increasing their gold holdings to higher levels than seen in at least four years.
