Gold Digger: Investors are piling into oversubscribed gold IPOs

The price of gold will “remain elevated” as governments pour cash into the post-pandemic economic recovery, the world’s biggest gold producer Newmont said this week.

This extended period of joy for gold miners and explorers is encouraging more companies to ‘make hay while the sun shines’ and chase ambitions of listing on the ASX.

Investors are also keen to jump on board.

On Thursday, SSR Mining (ASX:SSR) listed on the ASX on the same day the US headquartered gold company finalised its $5bn merger with Turkey-focused gold producer Alacer Gold (ASX:AQG).

The merged company has an annual production of around 720,000oz of gold, and 7.7 million ounces of silver from four mines.

Victorian gold explorer North Stawell Minerals (ASX:NSM) closed its $20m initial public offering after being inundated with demand and expects to list on the ASX next week.

It ranks as the biggest gold float on the ASX since Dacian Gold (ASX:DCN) in 2012, which also raised $20m in its IPO.

Ethiopia-focused Megado Gold — which raised the maximum $6m at 20c per share in a bookbuild that was “multiple times oversubscribed” — is next in line to light up the ASX boards around October 26 under the ticker ‘MEG’.

In early September, OzAurum Resources raised ~$1m in oversubscribed pre-IPO funding to secure 80 per cent of two advanced gold projects in WA.

OzAurum expects to mandate a lead manager for an IPO in the next month.

There’s also gold-focused Siren Gold, Pathfinder Resources, and Miramar Resources still to come.

Meanwhile, gold continues to bounce around the mid-$US1900/oz mark:

USD (yellow) and AUD (orange) gold prices since mid 2019.

The big Aussie miners had a strong week, led by Northern Star (ASX:NST) +12 per cent, Evolution Mining (ASX:EVN) +9 per cent, Ramelius Resources (ASX:RMS) +11 per cent, and Perseus Mining (ASX:PRU) +14 per cent.

Over the past 12 months, 128 of the 178 stocks on Stockhead’s gold list have made gains, led by standout performers Auteco Minerals (ASX:AUT) +2900 per cent, and De Grey (ASX:DEG) +2600 per cent.

Winners & Losers

Here’s how 178 ASX-listed gold stocks performed for the period September 14 – September 18 [intraday]:

Scroll or swipe to reveal table. Click headings to sort. Best viewed on a laptop

CODE	NAME	1 WEEK RETURN %	1 YEAR RETURN %	PRICE [intraday Friday]	MARKET CAP
BBX	BBX Minerals	60	203	0.0055	$ 167,322,677.20
KTA	Krakatoa Resources	51	495	0.12	$ 24,593,100.00
WWI	West Wits Mining	50	371	0.033	$ 37,922,136.16
TSC	Twenty Seven Co.	50	50	0.008	$ 11,104,246.15
CLA	Celsius Resources	42	100	0.034	$ 25,747,196.67
NAE	New Age Exploration	38	175	0.011	$ 9,776,584.51
ADN	Andromeda Metals	37	42	0.092	$ 153,591,186.82
DRE	Dreadnought Resources	33	233	0.019	$ 39,821,101.38
MSR	Manas Resources	33	100	0.008	$ 21,145,299.90
ADV	Ardiden	27	663	0.031	$ 58,245,232.75
AQI	Alicanto Minerals	27	184	0.0019	$ 57,556,540.87
SI6	Six Sigma Metals	25	275	0.015	$ 16,618,194.11
ALK	Alkane Resources	25	138	0.015	$ 827,590,432.00
CXU	Cauldron Energy	25	122	0.04	$ 15,051,593.40
PAK	Pacific American Holdings	25	-30	0.025	$ 6,930,000.00
AZS	Azure Minerals	24	8	0.002	$ 49,649,486.49
CHN	Chalice Gold Mines	24	795	0.0174	$ 482,782,017.90
CST	Castile Resources	24	0	0.0035	$ 64,905,789.33
ARV	Artemis Resources	21	179	0.092	$ 94,066,672.31
AMG	Ausmex Mining	21	-45	0.058	$ 31,211,393.67
MAR	Malachite Resources	18	-61	0.039	$ 4,860,308.70
TSO	Tesoro Resources	18	552	0.265	$ 100,996,874.64
CHZ	Chesser Resources	18	178	0.2	$ 81,285,591.60
MEI	Meteoric Resources	17	-25	0.048	$ 58,196,074.26
NPM	Newpeak Metals	17	-13	0.0035	$ 14,813,289.55
GBZ	GBM Resources	15	304	0.15	$ 49,382,994.15
OKU	Oklo Resources	15	150	0.3	$ 151,068,943.80
MZZ	Matador Mining	15	77	0.495	$ 81,687,458.27
MOH	Moho Resources	15	35	0.115	$ 7,648,476.77
GSN	Great Southern Mining	14	118	0.12	$ 49,091,492.64
ERX	Exore Resources	14	33	0.12	$ 70,722,732.60
DCX	Discovex Resources	14	-11	0.008	$ 9,569,312.61
A1G	African Gold	14	-14	0.16	$ 4,551,773.88
G88	Golden Mile Resources	14	-19	0.065	$ 6,911,656.34
WMX	Wiluna Mining Corp	14	90	1.9	$ 180,846,122.40
PRU	Perseus Mining	14	115	1.57	$ 1,784,451,053.72
KCN	Kingsgate Consolidated	14	139	1	$ 234,143,847.90
LEX	Lefroy Exploration	13	27	0.26	$ 27,131,421.15
SFM	Santa Fe Minerals	13	0	0.09	$ 6,553,691.01
GMN	Gold Mountain	13	-12	0.045	$ 29,905,146.66
NST	Northern Star	12	37	15.13	$ 11,025,517,134.24
AGS	Alliance Resources	12	79	0.235	$ 43,683,519.60
MHC	Manhattan Corp	11	880	0.049	$ 63,661,377.26
CAI	Calidus Resources	11	127	0.59	$ 154,779,405.63
RMS	Ramelius Resources	11	112	2.52	$ 1,996,944,337.83
TNR	Torian Resources	11	74	0.02	$ 14,627,794.22
WAF	West African Resources	10	126	1.18	$ 998,759,461.74
BGL	Bellevue Gold	10	85	1.18	$ 949,084,144.49
PDI	Predictive Discovery	10	534	0.075	$ 59,319,810.36
VMC	Venus Metals	10	41	0.275	$ 40,035,851.00
RML	Resolution Minerals	10	38	0.055	$ 15,650,364.30
BNR	Bulletin Resources	10	183	0.068	$ 12,371,222.11
PRX	Prodigy Gold	10	-37	0.069	$ 40,063,304.81
EVN	Evolution Mining	9	34	6.32	$ 10,559,229,823.20
STK	Strickland Metals	9	140	0.06	$ 25,922,294.30
DCN	Dacian Gold	9	-54	0.365	$ 194,777,993.90
CWX	Carawine Resources	9	23	0.245	$ 20,089,906.46
TTM	Titan Minerals	9	-34	0.13	$ 137,859,031.75
CTO	Citigold Corp	8	160	0.013	$ 31,214,078.51
OAU	Ora Gold	8	100	0.026	$ 20,180,285.33
RED	Red 5	8	21	0.36	$ 699,556,255.36
FML	Focus Minerals	8	38	0.42	$ 74,926,911.65
NES	Nelson Resources	8	83	0.071	$ 7,806,545.66
DEG	De Grey Mining	7	2606	1.54	$ 1,798,115,092.50
CMM	Capricorn Metals	7	92	2.25	$ 777,111,863.82
DGO	DGO Gold	7	385	3.88	$ 239,987,662.20
NUS	Nusantara Resources	7	19	0.31	$ 68,025,374.72
SLR	Silver Lake Resources	7	154	2.49	$ 2,141,337,921.03
TMX	Terrain Minerals	7	300	0.016	$ 11,570,576.14
AWV	Anova Metals	6	188	0.033	$ 38,791,143.08
GED	Golden Deeps	6	-26	0.017	$ 9,153,491.88
BYH	Bryah Resources	6	-34	0.053	$ 7,253,061.20
ALY	Alchemy Resources	6	77	0.019	$ 12,100,382.15
BCN	Beacon Minerals	6	-16	0.038	$ 111,708,118.98
HXG	Hexagon Energy	5	-17	0.058	$ 16,961,137.03
AUC	Ausgold	5	95	0.039	$ 50,713,632.10
MEU	Marmota Limited	5	43	0.05	$ 48,401,684.50
KZR	Kalamazoo Resources	5	161	0.73	$ 96,241,953.99
SSR	SSR Mining	5	-33	32.69	$ 498,300,000.00
VAN	Vango Mining	5	-46	0.1	$ 104,327,239.17
GML	Gateway Mining	5	0	0.022	$ 39,944,436.76
AOP	Apollo Consolidated	5	34	0.34	$ 90,147,022.65
RRL	Regis Resources	4	16	5.56	$ 2,831,488,083.15
GOR	Gold Road Resources	4	30	1.69	$ 1,443,076,586.72
BRB	Breaker Resources	4	-19	0.25	$ 66,534,307.00
SAR	Saracen Mineral	4	61	5.43	$ 5,759,666,224.00
MAT	Matsa Resources	4	-15	0.14	$ 36,604,805.72
NCM	Newcrest Mining	4	-6	32.94	$ 26,726,354,528.50
CDV	Cardinal Resources	3	124	1.07	$ 552,325,748.10
SAU	Southern Gold	3	-35	0.16	$ 21,862,897.00
WGX	Westgold Resources	3	2	2.46	$ 1,025,361,858.80
MDI	Middle Island Resources	3	94	0.0175	$ 46,315,912.55
STN	Saturn Metals	3	50	0.72	$ 64,205,456.40
MTC	Metalstech	2	1333	0.215	$ 11,787,461.86
ERM	Emmerson Resources	2	-34	0.095	$ 44,905,410.28
TIE	Tietto Minerals	2	174	0.575	$ 230,546,771.33
RXL	Rox Resources	2	138	0.062	$ 126,841,364.71
NXM	Nexus Minerals	1	62	0.076	$ 14,694,727.00
BC8	Black Cat Syndicate	1	72	0.79	$ 87,678,695.27
SBM	St Barbara	1	12	3.38	$ 2,335,729,271.16
EMR	Emerald Resources	1	65	0.645	$ 334,852,022.05
RSG	Resolute Mining	1	-34	1	$ 1,092,853,778.94
CYL	Catalyst Metals	0	9	2.48	$ 204,351,251.04
AUT	Auteco Minerals	0	2900	0.15	$ 235,076,840.40
MCT	Metalicity	0	403	0.024	$ 37,586,722.83
SBR	Sabre Resources	0	225	0.013	$ 13,757,108.84
BRV	Big River Gold	0	181	0.059	$ 82,964,740.70
AVW	Avira Resources	0	167	0.008	$ 11,000,000.00
GSM	Golden State Mining	0	155	0.255	$ 12,311,005.00
ARS	Alt Resources	0	133	0.049	$ 31,978,522.93
SVL	Silver Mines	0	130	0.23	$ 225,825,343.48
SKY	SKY Metals	0	120	0.13	$ 32,064,477.64
GNM	Great Northern	0	120	0.022	$ 20,761,098.26
KGM	Kalnorth Gold	0	117	0.013	$ 11,625,120.78
FFR	Firefly Resources	0	108	0.17	$ 42,865,272.78
NVA	Nova Minerals	0	80	0.09	$ 128,774,036.36
MKG	Mako Gold	0	60	0.13	$ 27,480,387.87
DTR	Dateline Resources	0	50	0.003	$ 24,630,234.23
VRC	Volt Resources	0	46	0.016	$ 30,308,330.60
GBR	Great Boulder Resources	0	34	0.049	$ 9,145,326.34
HMX	Hammer Metals	0	26	0.039	$ 23,823,645.03
TLM	Talisman Mining	0	20	0.115	$ 21,462,264.28
LNY	Laneway Resources	0	14	0.008	$ 30,200,527.46
GRL	Godolphin Resources	0	0	0.205	$ 13,619,174.80
OKR	Okapi Resources	0	-13	0.205	$ 7,388,787.53
NAG	Nagambie Resources	0	-18	0.051	$ 24,996,617.30
BDC	Bardoc Gold	0	-27	0.08	$ 141,934,404.83
CGN	Crater Gold Mines	0	-31	0.011	$ 13,502,454.54
KWR	Kingwest Resources	0	-41	0.16	$ 21,942,967.68
ANL	Amani Gold	0	-43	0.002	$ 15,676,393.49
ARN	Aldoro Resources	0	-47	0.1	$ 6,638,080.30
AME	Alto Metals	-1	102	0.085	$ 25,295,511.00
GUL	Gullewa Limited	-1	140	0.084	$ 13,267,220.40
TAR	Taruga Minerals	-1	227	0.069	$ 32,004,105.42
RGL	Riversgold	-2	330	0.057	$ 21,784,422.35
TBR	Tribune Resources	-2	-7	7.8	$ 407,676,958.29
MML	Medusa Mining	-2	-3	0.85	$ 178,703,098.86
E2M	E2 Metals	-2	-9	0.2	$ 26,240,037.20
CY5	Cygnus Gold	-3	205	0.18	$ 16,164,455.39
AMI	Aurelia Metals	-3	2	0.505	$ 436,991,898.50
MLL	Mali Lithium	-3	61	0.16	$ 56,567,300.84
HAW	Hawthorn Resources	-4	150	0.14	$ 45,024,607.76
HRZ	Horizon	-4	-4	0.13	$ 66,361,776.00
ARL	Ardea Resources	-4	-3	0.5	$ 62,755,732.73
MTH	Mithril Resources	-4	667	0.046	$ 100,179,607.01
ZNC	Zenith Minerals	-4	89	0.115	$ 32,379,603.30
CEL	Challenger Exploration	-4	412	0.22	$ 115,092,171.60
TRY	Troy Resources	-5	-5	0.1	$ 66,366,695.64
RDS	Redstone Resources	-5	100	0.02	$ 10,402,600.32
RND	Rand Mining	-5	-38	1.98	$ 125,710,312.75
HRN	Horizon Gold	-5	56	0.47	$ 40,923,932.59
GMR	Golden Rim Resources	-6	7	0.015	$ 26,759,023.37
VKA	Viking Mines	-7	8	0.014	$ 4,392,049.98
MAU	Magnetic Resources	-7	143	1.24	$ 259,285,652.40
PGI	Panterra Gold	-7	60	0.04	$ 7,805,665.96
TAM	Tanami Gold	-7	19	0.064	$ 75,206,210.94
DTM	Dart Mining	-8	59	0.185	$ 13,867,434.80
CDT	Castle Minerals	-8	20	0.012	$ 5,351,930.00
SIH	Sihayo Gold	-9	36	0.021	$ 60,108,936.87
MGV	Musgrave Minerals	-9	585	0.575	$ 277,343,986.73
CBY	Canterbury Resources	-9	-59	0.1	$ 8,955,726.15
DAU	Dampier Gold	-9	12	0.029	$ 8,548,816.20
PUA	Peak Minerals	-10	31	0.027	$ 12,483,823.17
KRM	Kingsrose Mining	-10	-10	0.036	$ 26,280,264.67
MKR	Manuka Resources	-11	0	0.5	$ 34,781,943.36
GWR	GWR Group	-11	90	0.2	$ 49,665,762.71
ONX	Orminex	-11	-73	0.031	$ 16,712,167.21
AAR	Anglo Australian	-13	165	0.175	$ 86,566,868.70
BAR	Barra Resources	-13	0	0.021	$ 14,166,770.12
XTC	Xantippe Resources	-14	0	0.003	$ 14,260,975.41
NWM	Norwest Minerals	-15	-43	0.115	$ 6,780,521.79
AXE	Archer Materials	-15	300	0.52	$ 121,151,604.42
SLZ	Sultan Resources	-18	223	0.21	$ 12,311,313.00
RMX	Red Mountain Mining	-20	60	0.008	$ 9,117,330.98
AAJ	Aruma Resources	-23	70	0.085	$ 10,254,725.13
MLS	Metals Australia	-25	50	0.003	$ 10,945,058.33
PUR	Pursuit Minerals	-25	50	0.015	$ 6,191,014.74
SMI	Santana Minerals	-25	0	0.003	$ 4,070,448.98

Small Cap Standouts

BUY, BUY, BUY!

A well timed acquisition can be a good way to reignite that share price.

Coal/renewable energy minnow Pacific American (ASX:PAK) is dipping a toe into WA gold exploration, while former cobalt high flyer Celsius Resources (ASX:CLA) is buying a suite of copper-gold projects in the Philippines.

Celsius’ acquisition includes an enormous, high-grade copper-gold porphyry deposit at the Maalinao-Caigutan-Biyog (MCB) project.

Porphyry deposits are multigenerational monsters, responsible for ~60 per cent of the world’s copper, most of its molybdenum, and significant amounts of gold and silver.

Highlight results from historical drilling include a 384m-long intersection grading 1.25 per cent copper and 0.46 grams per tonne (g/t) gold.

Celsius is going to move quickly, non-exec director Bill Oliver says.

“Currently, Anleck and Celsius are progressing a maiden JORC resource estimate for Makilala which is expected to be delivered once COVID quarantine restrictions ease, which will be followed by the commissioning of a scoping study,” he says.

WHAT’S THE DRILL?

A drilling program is kicking off at Alicanto’s (ASX:AQI) Greater Falun copper-gold project, located in Sweden’s mineral-rich Bergslagen district.

This project neighbours a bunch of big operations including the 28-million-tonne Falun deposit, mined over ~1,000 years at some pretty phenomenal grades until the 1990s.

This 4,000m diamond drilling program will be the first thorough, modern exploration campaign ever undertaken at the project, Alicanto says.

Up on no news was Lachlan Fold Belt gold explorer Krakatoa Resources (ASX:KTA), which is due to drop some highly anticipated first return assay results in the next week or so.

In response to a share price query from the ASX, Krakatoa said the first batch of assay results were expected to be received in one-to-two weeks “following which the company will complete its internal review processes before releasing to ASX”.

The explorer also included a sneaky spruik.

“At the time of writing, the final proposed hole QRD005 had commenced,” it says.

“This highly anticipated drill hole has been planned to test below the outstanding chip result of 1,535g/t gold just south of Dead Horse Reef where past explorers report numerous significant gold grades from chip and mullock sampling, including 135g/t, 26g/t, 14.6g/t and 12.55g/t.”