Which will be the next ASX gold stocks to be acquired? Here are 3 possible candidates

Investors are wondering which will be the next ASX gold stocks to be acquired. There has been a flurry of M&A activity this year, the latest deal of which was confirmed to go ahead yesterday with Gold Roads being bought by Gold Fields for $3.9bn.

There have been other deals too including a merger between Westgold (ASX:WGX) and TSX-listed Karora, as well as a $2bn firesale of Newmont and Newcrest’s secondary assets in the aftermath of the latter’s takeover by the former. Ramelius merging with Spartan in a $4bn deal was another – something we tipped when we last wrote this column.

But Northern Star’s (ASX:NST) purchase of De Grey (ASX:DEG) tops the lot, not just because it was a $5bn deal, but solidifies the position of Northern Star as the ASX’s number one gold miner.

De Grey’s Hemi project is expected to commence production in mid-2026 and produce 530,000 ounces over the next 10 years thereafter. It is not just a win for De Grey shareholders because they will get a big payday, but they’ll get it in the form of Northern Star shares and will own 20% of the consolidated entity. And finally, the takeover ensures Hemi will get the capital it needs to fund production. Don’t underestimate the importance latter point in a period of high inflation.

And of course, on top of all this, gold has been a hot commodity for several months now. It is up 25% since the start of 2024 and could hit US$3,000 next year if analysts are right.

In light of all of the above, let’s consider which gold stocks could be next to be acquired.

Candidates to be the next ASX gold stocks to be acquired

Genesis Minerals (ASX:GMD)

Genesis is a gold miner worth $4.4bn, targeting 3Moz production over the next 10 years from its Leonora Mill and Gwaila mine – which is slightly north of Kalgoorlie in WA. Its ore Reserves are 54Nt @ 2.1g/t for 3.7Moz, up from 3.3Moz just a year ago, and it has a milling capacity of 4.4Mtpa.

2025 is shaping up to be a year of investing in growth for Genesis, but it won’t need to raise capital any time soon with an A$222m cash balance. It has told investors to expect 190-210koz at an AISC of A$2,200-2,400/oz. The latter figure is expected to decrease as production increases. This could be just the tip of the iceberg as it seeks to build a resource at the neighbouring Tower Hill project and grows the resource at Gwaila.

Vault Minerals (ASX:VAU)

Vault is another A$3bn+ ASX gold stock. This one has four assets – the Mt Monge, Leonora and Deflector mines in WA, not to mention the Sugar Zone deposit in Canada. The latter is still at an exploration phase but has a Resource of 4.8Mt @ 8.2g/t for 1.28Moz.

The former 3 assets are in production and the company has guided to 390-430,000 ounces in FY25, with just over half coming from Leonora which is expected to produce 210,000-230,000 oz in FY25. With 211,939 oz produced in FY24, we don’t think that’s an unreasonable expectation. Spartan has $523m in cash, not a cent in debt plus A$381m in Australian tax losses alone, not accounting for C$255m in Canada.

Bellevue Gold (ASX:BGL)

This one is one of the few stocks that is not going so well and an acquirer could exploit the chance to get it on ‘the cheap’ (for just $1.3bn which is barely over half of what it was trading a year ago). And indeed, there have been reports this might happen.

Its rise from rags to riches was a spectacular story. It picked up its namesake project that had been an operating mine for a century but appeared to have run out of gold. Turned out there was more gold, and it defined a >3.1Moz Resource. Production began in late October 2023 with the first gold pour.

The trouble facing the company, and why the stock seems cheap, has been that production has not been going so well in recent months and the company recently cut its full-year production guidance by over 20%. Plus, it entered into bad hedging contracts – bad for Bellevue because they were agreed on at over US$1,000 lower to where prices were now. That said, it is no guarantee it’ll be taken over as the company raised $150m last month to turn things around.

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