Kinross Gold Corporation KGC reported adjusted earnings of 71 cents per share for the second quarter of 2026, up 61.4% from 44 cents in the year-ago quarter. The bottom line beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 66 cents by 7.6%.
Revenues increased 29.5% year over year to $2.2 billion but missed the consensus estimate of $2.3 billion by 2%. Higher realized gold prices supported the sales increase and helped offset lower attributable gold-equivalent production.
Kinross Gold Corporation Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise
Kinross Gold Corporation price-consensus-eps-surprise-chart | Kinross Gold Corporation Quote
Operational Performance
Kinross produced 492,326 attributable gold-equivalent ounces in the reported quarter, down 4% from 512,574 ounces in the prior-year period. Consolidated production totaled 501,341 gold-equivalent. The attributable production figure was below our estimate of 497,365.
The average realized gold price was $4,483 per ounce, up 36.5% from $3,284 per ounce in the second quarter of 2025. The improvement in gold pricing was the primary driver of the company’s year-over-year revenue growth. The figure was lower than our estimate of $4,598 per ounce.
Production cost of sales per gold-equivalent ounce sold increased 25.2% year over year to $1,352. The rise resulted mainly from higher fuel expenses, increased royalties associated with stronger gold prices and elevated labor costs. This was above our estimate of $1,291.
Attributable all-in sustaining cost per gold-equivalent ounce sold rose 22% to $1,821 from $1,493. This was above our estimate of $1,625. Despite higher costs, margin per gold-equivalent ounce sold increased 42.1% to $3,131 from $2,204, reflecting the benefit of significantly higher realized gold prices.
Financials
Cash and cash equivalents were $2.7billion at the end of the second quarter. Kinross added around $470 million to its cash position during the quarter after returning more than $275 million to shareholders.
Long-term debt was $738.8 million as of June 30, 2026. Capital expenditures increased to $411 million from $306.1 million a year ago due to higher development spending across several growth projects.
Outlook
Kinross remains on track to meet its 2026 annual guidance. The company expects attributable production of 2 million gold-equivalent ounces (+/- 5%).
Production cost of sales is projected at $1,360 per gold-equivalent ounce sold (+/- 5%). Attributable all-in sustaining cost is forecast at $1,730 per ounce sold (+/- 5%).
Total attributable capital expenditures are expected to be $1.5 billion (+/- 5%). The spending plan supports the advancement of Great Bear, Round Mountain Phase X, Curlew, Bald Mountain Redbird and other development initiatives.
The company also remains on track to return 40% of its 2026 free cash flow to shareholders. Kinross repurchased $480 million of shares during the first half and an additional $40 million in July. Including dividends, it had returned approximately $615 million to shareholders year to date as of July 29, 2026.
KGC’s Price Performance
Kinross’ shares have surged 33.8% in the past year compared with a 31.3% rise in the industry.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
KGC’s Zacks Rank & Key Picks
KGC currently carries a Zacks Rank #5 (Strong Sell).
Some better-ranked stocks in the basic materials space are Neo Performance Materials Inc. NOPMF, Kronos Worldwide, Inc. KRO and Avient Corporation AVNT.
Neo Performance is slated to report second-quarter 2026 results on Aug. 11. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for earnings is pegged at $1.48 per share. NOPMF sports a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) at present. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.
Kronos is scheduled to report second-quarter 2026 results on Aug. 5. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for KRO’s second-quarter loss per share is pegged at 33 cents, indicating 65.63% year-over-year growth. KRO also flaunts a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) at present.
Avient is slated to report second-quarter 2026 results on Aug. 6. The consensus estimate for AVNT’s earnings per share is pegged at $3.08. AVNT presently carries a Zacks Rank #2.
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