AU Q3 Earnings Rise 17.4% as Gold Prices Offset Weaker Production Madhurima Das Thu, November 12, 2026 at 10:57 AM EST 4 min read GC=F -3.00% AU -2.97% KGC -2.58% GFI -3.01% Explore stocks on Coinbase Trading disclosure Trading disclosure The above button links to Coinbase. Yahoo Finance is not a broker-dealer or investment adviser and does not offer securities or cryptocurrencies for sale or facilitate trading. Coinbase pays us for certain activity generated through this link. Prices displayed are informational.
AngloGold Ashanti plc AU delivered higher third-quarter 2026 earnings even as production and gold sales declined. A 21% increase in the average realized gold price helped offset weaker volumes and supported an 8.4% rise in revenues.
The result also exposed the limits of price-driven earnings growth. Unit costs climbed sharply and free cash flow fell year over year, leaving mine execution and cost control as important tests for the next stage of the earnings story.
AngloGold reported earnings of $1.55 per share for the third quarter, up 17.4% year over year. The figure missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.70 by 8.8%. Revenues increased 8.4% to $2.619 billion but fell 7.7% short of the consensus mark.Production dropped 9% to 696,000 ounces, while gold sales declined 8.8% to 697,000 ounces. The weakness was broader than portfolio changes alone, as production still fell 8% excluding the divested Serra Grande mine.
AngloGold Ashanti PLC price-consensus-eps-surprise-chart | AngloGold Ashanti PLC Quote
The average realized gold price rose 21% year over year to $4,239 per ounce. That pricing strength helped lift gross profit to $1.303 billion from $1.192 billion even though fewer ounces were sold.
Gold pricing has supported other producers as well. Gold Fields Limited GFI reported 605,000 gold-equivalent ounces of attributable production in the third quarter of 2026, with group all-in sustaining costs of $1,965 per ounce. Kinross Gold Corporation KGC reported 424,693 gold-equivalent ounces of production and an attributable all-in sustaining cost of $1,947 per ounce in the same period. Those results underscore how production and cost delivery remain central to translating elevated gold prices into operating gains.
AngloGold's group all-in sustaining costs increased to $2,170 per ounce from $1,720 a year earlier. Higher labor and contractor rates, fuel expenses, royalties and local-currency appreciation added pressure, while lower sales volumes and higher sustaining expenditure further raised the cost per ounce.
Cash generation showed the same constraint. Free cash flow fell to $722 million from $920 million as taxes rose and working capital absorbed funds. Group capital expenditure increased to $563 million from $388 million, showing that higher earnings did not translate into stronger quarterly cash generation.
Management reaffirmed 2026 production guidance of 2.80 million to 3.17 million ounces, including 2.53 million to 2.86 million ounces from managed operations. It also maintained group all-in sustaining cost guidance of $1,780-$1,990 per ounce.
The capital-spending range remains $1.825 billion to $1.975 billion. Improved mine access and grade sequencing are expected to support fourth-quarter delivery, but the guidance assumes no operational, labor or power interruptions and remains sensitive to inflation and exchange rates.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for the company's revenues for 2026 is currently pegged at $12.03 billion, suggesting 23.6% year-over-year growth. The consensus estimate for earnings per share indiacates growth of 48.2%.
The quarter showed that higher gold prices can offset weaker operating performance, but sustainable earnings quality still depends on production reliability, cost control and cash conversion. That makes execution more important than the 17.4% year-over-year earnings increase alone.
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Its Growth Score of A and VGM Score of B point to favorable growth characteristics, while the Value Score of C is more neutral and the Momentum Score of F signals weak momentum. Because the Style Scores are designed to complement the Zacks Rank, the current combination argues for near-term caution despite the company's underlying growth attributes.
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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).
