LONDON, May 1, 2026, 19:04 (BST)
- Fresnillo finished Friday at 3,255p, adding 0.62%. Thursday’s session saw a 3.95% bounce. Investing
- The London-listed miner held its 2026 guidance steady, despite an 8.5% drop in first-quarter silver production from the previous quarter.
- Silver futures climbed Friday, giving precious-metals miners a lift. Still, mine grades are the key concern. Investing
Fresnillo PLC shares ticked up on Friday, building on Thursday’s strong bounce. Investors shrugged off softer first-quarter silver output from the FTSE 100 miner, focusing instead on firmer precious-metals prices.
The stock finished the day at 3,255p, gaining 0.62%. That follows Thursday’s 3.95% jump. Still, shares remain under their January peak, though the tone turned steadier following three straight down sessions earlier this week. Investing
This shift is notable for Fresnillo, caught between rising precious metal prices and falling production. Silver futures added 3.23% Friday, gold edged up 0.25%, per Investing.com. Investing
Last week, Fresnillo reported attributable silver output slid to 11.1 million ounces for the first quarter. That’s down 8.5% from the prior quarter and 6.5% from a year ago. Lower ore grades and smaller volumes mined at Saucito, Fresnillo and Juanicipio were behind the drop, the company said.
Gold production came in at 136,074 ounces, a slight 0.7% pickup from the prior quarter. Still, that number is off 12.8% compared to the same stretch last year, with Herradura’s lower processed ore and grades weighing on results after an exceptionally strong first quarter of 2025.
Chief Executive Octavio Alvídrez said Fresnillo kicked off 2026 “in line with our expectations” and noted the company remains focused on costs. Alvídrez confirmed the new leaching pad at Herradura is finished, with ore now being deposited. Over at Saucito, he said construction on the Jarillas shaft is still moving forward, with completion slated for later this year.
Fresnillo left its 2026 outlook steady: 42 million to 46.5 million ounces of silver, 500,000 to 550,000 ounces of gold. No change for 2027 and 2028 either—the miner still expects silver output between 45 million and 51 million ounces each year.
The bigger worry: the grade issue may linger. Fresnillo blamed weaker silver output on both lower grades and reduced throughput—the amount of ore run through its plants. Over at Saucito, some operations slowed after the Jarillas shaft was taken offline in March for interconnection work. Ramp haulage should get back to usual levels in the second quarter, but that shaft connection won’t wrap up before the fourth quarter. Fresnilloplc
Feedback from peers has varied, though most have been positive. Fresnillo and Hochschild Mining both advanced after their latest quarterly updates, Reuters noted, with Hochschild posting stronger gold production than JPMorgan expected. Guidance for 2026 held steady for both miners. Sahm
Fresnillo stands out as a top London-listed play on silver. The group calls itself the largest primary silver producer globally, and also Mexico’s top gold miner. Its operations stretch across sites like Fresnillo, Saucito, Juanicipio, Ciénega, Herradura, Noche Buena, and San Julián. Fresnilloplc
The miner’s got some breathing space in the market for now. Still, what really moves Fresnillo shares from here might have less to do with where metals trade and more with whether it can convince investors that issues like lower grades and shaft maintenance are just passing headaches—not signs of a deeper production shakeup.
