Newmont Corp. (NYSE:NEM) shares rose in Friday’s premarket trading session. On Thursday, the company released its first-quarter earnings results, beating estimates on the top and bottom lines.

The Details: Newmont reported quarterly earnings of $2.90 per share, which beat the consensus estimate of $2.21.

Quarterly revenue came in at $7.31 billion, beating the analyst consensus estimate of $6.75 billion.

The company ended the quarter with $8.8 billion of cash.

Key Production Metrics

  • Attributable gold production fell 10% sequentially (Q/Q) to 1.30 million ounces. It is mainly due to weaker output across several operations. Bushfires impacted Boddington, while Tanami experienced lower grades due to planned sequencing and disruptions from heavy rainfall. Production at Lihir and Cerro Negro was also affected by lower grades and scheduled maintenance activities.
  • Consolidated gold sales were 1.23 million ounces for the quarter. The average realized gold price was $4,900 per ounce, up $684 per ounce Q/Q.
  • Copper production increased 3% Q/Q to 30,000 tons, driven by higher grade and improved throughput at Cadia.
  • Silver production rose 29% Q/Q to 9 million ounces, and lead production upped 17% Q/Q to 27 thousand tons.
  • Zinc production increased 35% Q/Q to 62 thousand tons, driven by higher co-product grade at Peñasquito.

Share Buyback & Dividend

During the quarter, Newmont returned $2.7 billion to shareholders via dividends and buybacks, while cumulative proceeds from its non-core asset sales have now surpassed $4.6 billion.

The company authorized a new $6 billion share buyback program.

It also declared a first-quarter 2026 dividend of 26 cents per share, payable on June 22, 2026, to shareholders of record as of May 27, 2026.

Outlook

Following the Cadia disruption, the company expects second-quarter production to dip slightly before recovering in the third quarter, while full-year guidance remains unchanged.

For 2026, the company expects total sustaining capital spending of $1.95 billion, including $381 million in the first quarter, with higher spending anticipated from the second quarter onward. Development capital is projected at $1.4 billion for the year.

Newmont projects that the second quarter will account for about 23% of full-year production, slightly below Q1 levels. Unit costs are expected to rise meaningfully due to higher sustaining capital, lower silver output, and increased costs at Boddington, Tanami, Lihir, and Peñasquito, along with higher oil prices and a full-quarter impact of Ghana’s increased royalty.

Both sustaining and development capital spending are also expected to step up in the second quarter, in line with the planned investment schedule.

NEM Price Action: Newmont shares were up 0.85% at $112.00 during premarket trading on Friday, according to Benzinga Pro data.

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