Regis Resources shares slump on ‘surprise’ | Australian Markets

A proposed New South Wales gold mine thwarted by former Federal Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek could possibly be spitting out more than $500 million of money a 12 months at present bullion costs, the boss of Regis Resources has lamented, whereas the company’s shares sink following a shock dividend.

But Regis nonetheless benefited from the gold price, hitting a quantity of all-time highs over the 2025 financial 12 months. The WA miner produced a document web revenue of $254m and $821m of money from its operations during the financial 12 months.

Sales of the valuable steel additionally hit a document of $1.65 billion from 375,000 ounces — up 30 per cent on the earlier 12 months. The average gold price achieved was $4387/oz.

“With the business’ high profitability and impressive cash generation, the directors have declared a final fully franked dividend of 5¢ per share totalling $38m,” Regis said.

The dividend took the market abruptly.

“We were not expecting a franked dividend given Regis noted they had no franking credits on the July call but today delivered a 5¢ fully-franked dividend,” Citi analyst Kate McCutcheon advised shoppers.

Many institutional traders favor firms that don’t pay a dividend. Institutional traders, in contrast to mum and pop shareholders, are usually not eligible to say a tax offset for a franking credit.

The comparatively small dimension of the dividend could have additionally sparked hypothesis Regis is hoarding money to make a main acquisition that will require a dilutive capital raise.

Shares in Regis, which final paid a dividend in 2022, misplaced 9 per cent to complete trade at $4.07.

Regis remains to be holding out hope a judicial review in December will overturn Ms Plibersek’s determination in August final 12 months to dam development of the McPhillamys gold project — overriding a sequence of different regulatory approvals Regis had acquired.

“You could do the maths, this thing would be generating at least one million to 1.5 million bucks in cash a day, if it was operating at the moment, pre-tax,” Regis managing director Jim Beyer stated on Friday.

“So do we think it’s a valuable project? Abso-dam-lutely, we do.”

With McPhillamys’ future in limbo, Regis is strongly rumoured to be eyeing different avenues of growth.

The miner earlier this week poured cold water on media hypothesis that it was in “advanced” talks to take full control of the Tropicana gold mine within the northern Goldfields from three way partnership accomplice AngloGold Ashanti.

Regis grabbed a 30 per cent slice of the profitable mine from IGO in a deal price $903m in 2021.

Analyst consensus places a $2.6b price tag on a 70 per cent stake of Tropicana at present gold costs. AngloGold has declined to remark on the sale hypothesis.

Mr Beyer didn’t remark on the Tropicana rumours particularly on Friday, however expressed curiosity in doubtlessly broadening Regis’s portfolio past gold with an acquisition.

“If we found the right, you know, M&A opportunity that had a copper and gold combination that certainly wouldn’t scare us at all,” he stated.

But sources have advised The West Australian that AngloGold executives had been in Perth on Friday, including fuel to the fire of the Tropicana hypothesis.