Mineral Resources shares jump 7% on guidance upgrade

Mineral Resources Ltd (ASX: MIN) shares are surging on Thursday after the mining and services group delivered a fresh quarterly update.

At the time of writing, the Mineral Resources share price is up 7.29% to $66.29.

That adds to what has already been a strong run. The stock is up around 22% in 2026 and has rocketed by more than 220% over the past 12 months.

So, what did the company report?

Guidance lifted across key operations

According to the release, Mineral Resources has upgraded its full-year guidance across several core parts of the business.

Onslow iron ore is now expected to produce between 17.7wmt and 19.4wmt for FY26, up from 17.1wmt and 18.8wmt.

Mining services volume guidance has also been lifted to 320Mt to 330Mt, pointing to strong demand across its contracting business.

Lithium guidance has also been lifted, with Wodgina now expected to produce 270k dmt to 290k dmt of spodumene concentrate, while Mt Marion is set to deliver 210k dmt to 230k dmt.

Production dips while pricing improves

Despite the lift in guidance, the March quarter was a bit uneven, with a few factors getting in the way of production across the business.

Iron ore shipments took a hit from cyclone activity, which slowed crushing and logistics at Onslow for a period.

On the lithium side, both Wodgina and Mt Marion also ran into some short-term interruptions, mainly due to weather and operational factors.

Even with those setbacks, pricing helped balance things out.

Average realised iron ore prices moved higher across both Onslow and the Pilbara Hub, sitting around the low US$100’s per tonne.

Lithium pricing also improved over the quarter, lifting into the US$900 to US$1,000 per tonne range.

The stronger pricing helped offset the softer volumes and kept revenue fairly steady across the group.

Costs and balance sheet in focus

Costs are still something to keep an eye on, particularly with diesel moving higher during the quarter.

That is expected to flow through into unit costs in the June period, which could add a bit of pressure in the short term.

Even so, the company has kept its full-year cost guidance unchanged across the business, suggesting things are still tracking within expectations.

On the balance sheet side, there was some improvement.

Net debt came down to around $4.5 billion by the end of March, from roughly $4.9 billion in the prior quarter.

Foolish takeaway

The update shows the business is still moving forward across a few key areas.

Guidance is higher, debt is coming down, and the main projects are progressing.

From here, I would be watching how Onslow ramps through the rest of the year and whether lithium volumes can stay consistent.

The post Mineral Resources shares jump 7% on guidance upgrade appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor Aaron Teboneras has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.