The Evolution Mining Ltd (ASX: EVN) share price is in focus today after the gold and copper miner delivered record FY26 cash flow of $1,389 million and maintained a net cash position, while meeting its FY26 group production and cost guidance.

What did Evolution Mining report?

• FY26 gold production: 715,000 ounces; copper production: 66,000 tonnes
• All-in sustaining cost (AISC) in FY26: $1,717/oz, a sector-leading result
• June quarter production: 180,000 oz gold, 19,000 t copper at AISC $1,706/oz (improved 23% quarter-on-quarter)
• Record operating mine cash flow: $3,394 million; net mine cash flow: $2,079 million
• Group cash balance: $1,347 million, with no debt repayments due until FY29
• Record interim dividend: $406 million paid to shareholders

What else do investors need to know?

Operational highlights this year included Ernest Henry returning to full production after weather disruptions and the successful ramp-up of the Mungari mill. All high-return organic growth projects, such as Cowal Open Pit Continuation and the Northparkes E22 development, remain on schedule and within budget.

Importantly, Evolution Mining is now fully unhedged, giving it potential upside exposure to gold and copper prices. The company’s safety performance also remained steady, with a low total recordable injury frequency rate of 5.9 as at 30 June 2026.

What did Evolution Mining management say?

Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer Lawrie Conway said:

FY26 continued to build on the improved consistent performance of the past couple of years, meeting Group production and cost guidance. For the full year, we produced 715koz of gold and 66kt of copper at a sector-leading AISC of $1,717/oz. The June quarter delivered 180koz of gold and 19kt of copper at an AISC of $1,706/oz which improved 23%. We delivered record FY26 Group cash flow of $1,389M at a high margin of $1,958/oz. We are now fully unhedged and in a net cash position with a cash balance of $1,347M. All high-return organic growth projects remain on schedule and budget.

What’s next for Evolution Mining?

FY27 guidance will be formally released on 19 August 2026. Early indications suggest no major changes to production capacity, except for the planned closure of Mt Rawdon. Inflation pressures are expected to lift all-in sustaining costs by roughly $150–$160/oz in FY27, and mine development investment is set to increase to sustain operational reliability and progress key projects at Northparkes, Cowal, and Ernest Henry.

Exploration spend is also flagged to rise in FY27, as the company looks to build on success across its key gold and copper assets and evaluate promising greenfield opportunities. The focus will remain on reliable delivery, margin protection, and prudent capital investment.

Evolution Mining share price snapshot

Over the past 12 months, Evolution Mining shares have risen 53%, outperforming the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO), which has risen 2% over the same period.

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The post Evolution Mining posts record FY26 cash flow appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor Laura Stewart 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. This article was prepared with the assistance of Large Language Model (LLM) tools for the initial summary of the company announcement. Any content assisted by AI is subject to our robust human-in-the-loop quality control framework, involving thorough review, substantial editing, and fact-checking by our experienced writers and editors holding appropriate credentials. The Motley Fool Australia stands behind the work of our editorial team and takes ultimate responsibility for the content published by The Motley Fool Australia.

Artificial intelligence and, by extension, cloud computing and data centres have been perhaps the biggest investment theme globally over the past year.

Companies such as Nvidia Corp (NASDAQ: NVDA), Micron Technology Inc (NASDAQ: MU) and SpaceX (NASDAQ: SPCX) have attracted huge investor interest as the infrastructure demands of the AI industry continue to grow.

Not all providers created equal

Macquarie has this week issued a research note to clients, which argues that simple ownership of GPUs (graphics processing units) is not enough, but that it has to be paired with the ability to “convert capital, power and installed capacity into useful compute”.

They add:

In our view, useful compute per MW per dollar is the most important metric for assessing Neocloud quality. Neocloud customers buy useful compute output, not machine access. Two operators using the same GPU hardware can deliver materially different performance, utilisation, latency and cost outcomes depending on network architecture, software stack, reliability, batching, caching and customer mix. As the industry matures, durable premiums will accrue to operators that can prove better delivered compute.

To clarify, a neocloud is a specialised cloud provider built to specifically support AI and machine learning workloads.

Which ASX tech companies look set to benefit?

When it comes to the Australian market, Macquarie’s top sector picks for companies that can support neoclouds are Megaport Ltd (ASX: MP1) and Nextdc Ltd (ASX: NXT).

Macquarie said in its note to clients that in Australia, neocloud entrants like Firmus and Sharon AI “are competing for the same scarce pool of data centre capacity, adding another source of demand to a market that was already supply constrained”.

They added:

The relevance for NXT is straightforward: neoclouds are being forced to secure data centre capacity ahead of GPU deployment, with NVIDIA supply of GPUs contingent on signing upfront data centre contracts. This pulls demand forward into an already constrained market. NXT’s agreement with Sharon AI for 50MW of capacity at its M3 site is an example of this.

Macquarie has a price target of $18.30 on Nextdc shares compared to $13.07 currently.

With regard to Megaport, Macquarie said the company “already has the diversified Enterprise customer base and characteristics that drive quality for Neocloud operators”.

They added:

These characteristics drive lower operating risk (MP1 signs contracts before capex), a net cash position, and higher quality business and customer mix.

Macquarie said Megaport’s Latitude business division was also diversified well-beyond just AI, supporting a “highly diverse mix of non-AI workloads, including web hosting, game servers, large relational databases, streaming applications, and traditional enterprise IT migrations that require high performance without virtualisation overhead”.

Macquarie has a price target of $27.80 on Megaport shares compared to $19.90 currently.

The post Which ASX tech companies does Macquarie like in the surging cloud computing sector? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor Cameron England has positions in Megaport and Nextdc. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has positions in and has recommended Megaport. 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.

The Rio Tinto Ltd (ASX: RIO) share price is in focus today after the mining giant reported copper equivalent production rose 3% year-on-year for the first half of 2026, with iron ore and lithium output also trending higher.

What did Rio Tinto report?

• First-half 2026 copper equivalent (CuEq) production up 3% year on year
• Oyu Tolgoi copper mine delivered 31% higher copper output, supporting copper C1 net unit cost reductions
• Pilbara iron ore sales in Q2 at 85.3 Mt, up 7% on Q2 2025; H1 iron ore sales totalled 157.7 Mt (+5% YoY)
• Bauxite production recovered in Q2, but H1 fell 7% YoY to 28.5 Mt
• Lithium carbonate equivalent (LCE) production jumped 20% in Q2 and 53% in H1 to 27.3 kt
• 2026 production and cost guidance across key commodities left unchanged

What else do investors need to know?

In the first half of 2026, Rio Tinto saw strong contributions across most commodities, with productivity programs helping lift Pilbara iron ore’s output to the highest first half levels since 2018. The ramp up of Oyu Tolgoi underground operations supported significant growth in copper output, while new lithium projects—Sal de Vida and Fénix 1B—delivered first production ahead of plan.

Production guidance for iron ore, copper, aluminium, and lithium remains unchanged for the full year. The group flagged ongoing resilience despite global supply chain challenges and only “limited” operational impacts from Middle East disruptions. Notably, Rio’s copper portfolio benefited from strong pricing trends, while higher diesel costs modestly raised Pilbara iron ore cash costs.

Large-scale expansion projects including Simandou iron ore, Canadian AP60 aluminium smelter, and Rincon lithium in Argentina are tracking milestones, with some nearing completion. Free cash flow reporting changes and the group’s commitment to capital discipline were also highlighted.

What did Rio Tinto management say?

Rio Tinto Chief Executive Simon Trott commented:

We are delivering growth as we drive performance across the group, with copper equivalent production up 3 per cent in the first half. Our scale, geographical diversification and sophisticated supply chains continue to underpin our resilience and strong operational performance despite ongoing geopolitical uncertainty throughout the period

What’s next for Rio Tinto?

Management reaffirmed full-year production and cost guidance across core businesses. In the Pilbara, ongoing productivity investments are expected to underpin stable iron ore shipments, though some port outload capacity reductions are flagged as capital works continue. Copper growth is set to accelerate as Oyu Tolgoi ramps up and work advances at Resolution (US) and Winu (WA) projects.

Lithium remains a strategic focus, with expansion in Argentina proceeding and inaugural production from key assets achieved ahead of expectations. The Simandou iron ore development and Canada’s AP60 aluminium project are major near-term catalysts. Management remains upbeat about long-term market demand for Rio Tinto’s portfolio of future-facing minerals.

Rio Tinto share price snapshot

Over the past 12 months, Rio Tinto shares have risen 48%, outperforming the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO), which has risen 2% over the same period.

View Original Announcement

The post Rio Tinto: 3% production growth and strong lithium output in H1 2026 appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Evolution Mining posts record FY26 cash flow
• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Wednesday
• Here are the top 10 ASX 200 shares today
• Steadfast Group takeover bid update: KKR joins consortium
• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Tuesday

Motley Fool contributor Laura Stewart 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. This article was prepared with the assistance of Large Language Model (LLM) tools for the initial summary of the company announcement. Any content assisted by AI is subject to our robust human-in-the-loop quality control framework, involving thorough review, substantial editing, and fact-checking by our experienced writers and editors holding appropriate credentials. The Motley Fool Australia stands behind the work of our editorial team and takes ultimate responsibility for the content published by The Motley Fool Australia.