Evotec shares shot up by over 10 per cent on Friday. Is it due to the payment from the Gates Foundation? Or is there a new attempt to buy German biotech companies soon? Desert Gold (TSXV:DAU) is a hot takeover candidate in the gold sector. The Canadians aim to expand their resources to 2 million ounces and start production soon. Analysts at GBC Research believe the share price could multiply. GBC’s estimates are based on a gold price of USD 2,300. Currently, the precious metal is trading above USD 3,000. According to experts, USD 6,000 is even possible. In that case, even Barrick could strike it rich. However, the latest first-quarter report failed to provide new momentum for the stock. Are acquisitions needed?
Barrick Gold: JPMorgan sees USD 6,000 per ounce
A price of USD 4,000 per troy ounce of gold would be fantastic for investors. However, according to JPMorgan, this could only be a stopover until 2026. An expert at the leading US bank believes a price of USD 6,000 is possible in the coming years. The trigger for this is Donald Trump’s erratic decisions – the tariff chaos is just one example.
The increased tariffs under Trump 2.0 have created an environment of financial uncertainty, and a recession is feared in the second half of the year. As a result, investors would lose their appetite for US investments and their confidence in the US dollar as a safe haven. Should this solidify, gold should benefit. According to this, an inflow of just 0.5 per cent of the capital currently held by institutional investors in US assets would be enough to drive the gold price to USD 6,000 by 2029. The wars in Ukraine and the Middle East, as well as the current escalation between Pakistan and India, also favor gold.
These are golden times for gold producers. Barrick Gold is, of course, a basic investment in this sector. The gold and copper company recently reported on its performance in the first quarter of 2025. Gold production reached 758,000 ounces, at the upper end of the forecast. Copper production rose to 44,000 tons. Barrick is sticking to its forecasts for annual production.
Barrick CEO Mark Bristow commented: “At Reko Diq and Lumwana, the lengthy work has been secured and Fluor and Hatch have been appointed as technical partners. These projects will significantly increase Barrick’s copper and gold production and support our goal of organically increasing our gold equivalent ounces by 30 per cent by the end of the decade.” Overall, Barrick is continuing its strategy of focusing on Tier 1 gold and copper projects. As part of that, it sold a 50 per cent stake in the Donlin gold project for USD 1 billion. However, the stock failed to benefit from this. As in previous months, investors seem unconvinced by the organic growth strategy – they appear to be missing acquisitions. A takeover of Desert Gold, for example, could help Barrick expand its operations in West Africa.
Desert Gold: A takeover candidate with 2 million ounces?
As Barrick’s sale shows, the takeover merry-go-round is spinning in the gold sector, albeit slowly. Desert Gold (TSXV:DAU) is a hot candidate for a takeover – and not just by Barrick. B2Gold, Allied Gold, and Endeavour Mining also have projects in the vicinity of Desert Gold and could make a move.
Desert Gold holds a 440 km² land package in the Kenieba window. There, 310,300 ounces have already been proven, and 769,200 ounces have been indicated. This adds up to a strong 1.079 million ounces of gold – and the trend is rising. Desert recently acquired historical drilling data from an Australian company. At that time, around 480,000 ounces were estimated. An evaluation is currently underway to provide certainty. The Company is therefore confident that it will not only start production in the current year, but also increase the resource to 2 million ounces. This would finally make Desert Gold a hot takeover candidate. With a market capitalization of only CAD 20 million, the Company is a real bargain.
GBC Research also considers Desert shares to be far too cheap. Analysts see the fair value of the shares at CAD 0.425. Desert Gold shares are currently trading at only CAD 0.08. The analysts’ valuation is based on a gold price of USD 2,300 – currently, we are at around USD 3,300. According to JPMorgan, the price of gold could rise massively in the coming years.
For the latest insights into Desert Gold’s developments and a direct impression of its management, investors are encouraged to register for the upcoming IIF virtual investor conference on May 21, 2025. CEO Jared Scharf will present live, offering valuable updates and strategic perspectives. Click here for free registration.
Evotec: New takeover attempt?
Evotec shares gained over 10 per cent on Friday. Is this just a short-term counter-movement? According to investor magazine Der Aktionär, the biotech company could once again become a takeover target. At the end of last year, Halozyme Therapeutics failed with a rather half-hearted attempt. Now, there is speculation that there are interested parties again, according to reports on Friday. What is clear is that Evotec wants to divest parts of the Company. The management board communicated this when it published its annual figures and future strategy.
In any case, there were no operational reasons for the jump in the share price. The latest payment announced by the Gates Foundation (GF) to support the development of next-generation tuberculosis therapies was too low at USD 2.5 million. However, this is the second grant from the Gates Foundation to Evotec to evaluate new and improved tuberculosis therapies using the Company’s translational platforms. Under the new funding, Evotec will further characterize promising drug combinations using its fully integrated TB platform to accelerate the development of innovative TB therapies.
Evotec CSO Dr. Cord Dohrmann commented: “We are honored to receive this new grant from GF, which underscores our shared commitment to developing better treatment options for tuberculosis. Through our ongoing partnership, we have made important contributions to identifying promising new therapies, and this funding will enable us to continue this work.”
Evotec’s share price shows how quickly takeover rumors can drive momentum. Desert Gold should also be able to achieve significantly higher production levels quickly, at least by the start of production, unless one of its large neighbors strikes first. Perhaps it is time for Barrick to jump back on the acquisition carousel. The current focus on in-house projects does not seem to be winning over the market.
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