New York, March 1, 2026, 15:00 EST — Market closed.
- Newmont ended the week firmer as bullion stayed in play.
- Weekend Middle East headlines have traders bracing for a jumpy open.
- An analyst upgrade put Newmont back on some Monday watchlists.
Newmont Corporation (NEM) shares ended Friday up 1.98% at $130, extending a three-session run and leaving the stock little changed in late trading at about $130.19. 1
The bigger question now is what Monday brings. Reuters reported the United States and Israel carried out strikes on Iran over the weekend that killed Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, jolting risk appetite as trading reopened in parts of the market. Analysts said oil could open sharply higher and gold was likely to jump, a set-up that typically feeds straight into gold-linked equities. 2
Even before the weekend, bullion was already pushing higher. Spot gold rose 0.8% on Friday to $5,230.56 an ounce and U.S. futures settled 1% higher, helped by softer U.S. Treasury yields — a tailwind for an asset that pays no interest. “Gold’s next likely upside target is $5,450, with key support near $5,120,” said Phillip Streible, chief market strategist at Blue Line Futures; markets were pricing about a 42% chance of a U.S. rate cut in June, Reuters reported. 3
Bernstein upgraded Newmont to Outperform from Market-Perform on Friday and lifted its price target to $157 from $121, according to Investing.com, which said the call leaned on a more bullish long-term gold outlook. The brokerage also lifted its gold forecasts to $4,800 an ounce for 2026 and $6,100 for 2030, it reported. 4
Company-specific calendar items are close, too. Newmont has said its $0.26-a-share quarterly dividend is payable on March 26 to shareholders of record at the close of business on March 3. 5
In its Feb. 19 results, Newmont beat Wall Street profit estimates and said it would invest $1.4 billion to develop projects tied to its Newcrest acquisition, Reuters reported. The world’s largest gold miner also forecast 2026 gold production of 5.3 million ounces versus 5.89 million in 2025; CEO Natascha Viljoen said, “The focus on operational improvement is high on our agenda.” 6
But the set-up cuts both ways. A pullback in bullion — or a rebound in U.S. yields — can hit miners fast, and Newmont’s execution on output and costs remains a live variable as the company works through mine sequencing and project spend. Peers such as Barrick and Agnico Eagle usually trade with the metal too, so a broad sector swing can swamp company news.
For the week ahead, traders will watch how far the Middle East shock bleeds into gold, oil and rate expectations, and what that means for risk appetite when U.S. equities reopen on Monday. The next hard marker is the U.S. employment report for February, due at 8:30 a.m. ET on March 6. 7
