S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) gold stocks like Evolution Mining Ltd (ASX: EVN), Newmont Corp (ASX: NEM), and Northern Star Resources Ltd (ASX: NST) shares put in a mixed performance in May.
Over the month just past, the ASX 200 gained 0.8%.
Evolution Mining shares outpaced those gains, closing at $12.14 apiece on 29 May, up 2% for the month.
Newmont shares just trailed the benchmark index, gaining 0.6% in May to close the month trading for $151.27 each.
Northern Star shares were the laggards of the pack. Northern Star shares slumped 10.4% in May, finishing the month at $18.81.
All of the ASX 200 gold stocks faced some modest headwinds, with the gold price declining 1.6% from US$4,614 per ounce on 1 May to US$4,540 on 29 May, the last trading day of the month.
Still, at the close of the month, the gold price remained up more than 32% year on year.
Image source: Getty Images
Why did Northern Star shares underperform in May?
Northern Star shares have been under pressure since notching an all-time high of $31.73 in early March.
Among other issues, investors have been concerned over recent production downgrades along with rising cost forecasts.
The ASX 200 gold stock dropped another 2.1% on 21 May. That came after the miner announced that its managing director, Stuart Tonkin, will step down from his position in Q1 FY 2027, after 13 years with the company.
Turning our attention to today, you might have noticed that Northern Star shares are surging 10.7% to $20.49 apiece.
That big leg-up comes amid news (courtesy of The Australian Financial Review) that US hedge fund juggernaut Elliott Management is calling for a major overhaul at the beleaguered Aussie gold giant.
Elliot Management said it now holds more than $1 billion worth of Northern Star shares.
Elliot Management stated:
The market views Northern Star as a poor operator with a pattern of operational missteps and repeated failures to execute capital projects on time and on budget…
Northern Star owes it to its shareholders to promptly explore all strategic alternatives, including a sale of the company. We believe there would be significant strategic interest in Northern Star.
Stay tuned!
How did these other top ASX 200 gold stocks perform in May?
Moving away from the biggest three, here's how these other leading ASX 200 gold stocks stacked up in May amid the 1.6% retrace in the gold price:
- Ramelius Resources Ltd (ASX: RMS) shares fell 4.2%
- Bellevue Gold Ltd (ASX: BGL) shares gained 2.0%
- Genesis Minerals Ltd (ASX: GMD) shares gained 0.9%
- Perseus Mining Ltd (ASX: PRU) shares fell 4.8%
- Vault Minerals Ltd (ASX: VAU) shares fell 6.5%
- Westgold Resources Ltd (ASX: WGX) shares fell 4.1%
- Ora Banda Mining Ltd (ASX: OBM) shares gained 3.8%
- Greatland Resources Ltd (ASX: GGP) shares gained 2.1%
