Shares in precious metals producer Hochschild Mining (LSE: HOC) jumped on Wednesday after it posted its best quarterly performance in almost five years, thanks mainly to its Mara Rosa mine in Brazil.
Shares were up 7.3% at £2.50 each in early morning trading in London, stabilizing by mid-afternoon at around £2.38 each, leaving the company with a market capitalization of £1.24 billion (US$1.6 billion).
The South America-focused miner said it mined 16% more gold and silver in the third quarter of the year than it did in the same period of 2023, with 96,327 oz. on a gold-equivalent basis. The company uses equivalent ounces to reflect an amalgamation of both gold and silver production.
Gold production in the three months to the end of September increased 40%, boosted by the continuing ramp up of its Mara Rosa mine in Brazil, which started production early this year.
Output from the company’s flagship Inmaculada mine in Peru rose 6%, reflecting results of continuous improvement projects at site. This increase helped offset a silver production fall of 17%.
Strong gold and silver prices boosted Hochschild’s cash flow, helping the miner to pay down $45 million of its net debt in the quarter.
“Hochschild Mining’s third quarter has been the strongest in almost five years,” chief executive officer Eduardo Landin said in a statement.
The company reaffirmed its annual production and cost targets, anticipating output of 343,000 to 360,000 gold equivalent ounces at all-in sustaining costs of US$1,510-1,550 per gold equivalent ounce.
Hochschild Mining has operations in Peru, Argentina and Brazil and development projects in Chile and Peru.
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