Northern Star Resources Ltd (ASX: NST) shares are trading higher after the company announced it would meet production guidance and had also appointed a new Chief Executive Officer and Chair.
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Activist investor has been applying pressure to Northern Star
Northern Star has been under pressure in recent months after activist investor Elliott Investment Management bought up a stake in the business and began agitating for a potential break-up of the business, as well as pushing for board renewal.
Elliott also criticised Northern Star's production record after the company in January reduced FY26 gold production guidance from 1,700,000 to 1,850,000 ounces, down to 1,600,000 to 1,700,000 ounces.
Northern Star then updated the market in March, saying that even hitting the lower end of that guidance, "will be challenging given weaker performance in the last two months''.
The company added, "It remains the case that the company faces significant ongoing operational challenges particularly given the difficulty of maintaining throughput at required levels through the existing mill at KCGM''.
But on Thursday morning, the company released some good news on the production front, saying a strong June quarter meant it would meet guidance.
The company said total gold sold for the June quarter was 433,000 ounces, bringing FY26 gold sold to 1,543,000 ounces.
Northern Star also said it had $1.25 billion in cash and gold on hand at the end of the June quarter, and had repurchased $129 million worth of its shares during the quarter under its $500 million share buyback program.
It added that following a three-year construction period, the KCGM mill expansion project was tracking to schedule, with an increase in throughput from 13 million tonnes per annum to 27 million tonnes on track for commissioning in early FY27.
Northern Star announces new leader
On the leadership front, the company said it had appointed Suresh Vadnagra to succeed Stuart Tonkin as Managing Director, effective 5 October, 2026.
The company said re the appointment:
Mr Vadnagra is a highly accomplished global mining executive with more than 25 years of experience spanning strategy, operations, major projects, transactions, business transformation and enterprise leadership across large, complex, multi commodity portfolios. He is currently Head of Glencore Nickel and Zinc Industrial Assets based in Switzerland, with responsibility for a diverse global portfolio of more than 25 operations spanning open pit and underground mines, smelters and refineries. Prior to his role at Glencore, Mr Vadnagra was the Chief Technical and Projects Officer at Newcrest, where he was accountable for Newcrest's major projects, technical teams and technology.
Northern Star also announced that Michael Ashforth would succeed Michael Chaney as Chair, with effect from the conclusion of this year's Annual General Meeting in November.
Broker Morgans has a $26 per share price target on Northern Star shares, saying the company has a compelling medium to long-term growth story.
Northern Star Resources shares were 2.5% higher at $19.28 in early trade.
