The Northern Star Resources Ltd (ASX: NST) share price is in focus today after the company revealed it received and rejected a conditional takeover bid from Gold Fields Limited, valuing the gold miner at up to $38.7 billion—a 22% premium to its pre-offer price.

What did Northern Star Resources report?

• Northern Star received a non-binding, indicative and confidential proposal from Gold Fields to acquire 100% of its shares via a scheme.
• The offer: 0.3125 new Gold Fields shares (via CHESS Depositary Interests) plus $7.25 cash per Northern Star share.
• Implied value: $27.00 per share based on 11 September 2026 Gold Fields close; $25.19 per share based on 25 September 2026 prices.
• Implied equity value: $38.7 billion initially; $36.1 billion using updated Gold Fields share price.
• Offer represented a 14–22% premium to Northern Star’s recent share price.
• The Board unanimously rejected the bid, citing undervaluation and high completion risk.

What else do investors need to know?

Northern Star’s Board said the proposal was materially opportunistic ahead of key growth milestones, naming the Fimiston Mill commissioning and the start of its incoming CEO as value catalysts. The offer’s 73% scrip component would expose Northern Star shareholders to new regulatory and operational risks in South Africa—risks they don’t currently face.

Conditions also included a lengthy exclusivity period with no room for competing offers, as well as several regulatory approvals that could delay or jeopardise completion. Northern Star made clear it would not engage further unless a more compelling proposal emerges.

What did Northern Star Resources management say?

Chairman Michael Chaney AO said:

Gold Fields has sought to acquire one of the world’s premier gold portfolios at a price that falls well short of what the Board considers to be its fundamental value and at a highly opportunistic time. Furthermore, Gold Fields has asked our shareholders to take nearly three-quarters of the consideration in Gold Fields stock, which carries a meaningfully higher jurisdictional risk profile than the exposure they hold today. These factors, in conjunction with the conditionality of the Indicative Proposal, are the basis on which the Board has unanimously rejected the Indicative Proposal.

What’s next for Northern Star Resources?

Northern Star highlighted its unique position as the owner of high-quality, long-life assets in tier-1 mining jurisdictions. It remains focused on delivering near-term growth, particularly through the ramp-up of the Fimiston Mill—a key catalyst the Board says could unlock further shareholder value.

The company confirmed it will keep the market updated on any further approaches or material events in line with ongoing disclosure obligations.

Northern Star Resources share price snapshot

Over the past 12 months, the Northern Star Resources shares have declined 6%, trailing the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO), which has declined 2% over the same period.

View Original Announcement

The post Northern Star Resources rejects $38.7bn Gold Fields takeover offer 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.

The ASX dividend stock Pinnacle Investment Management Group Ltd (ASX: PNI) may not be as cheap as it was at the start of the 2026, but I reckon it’s still great value today.  

As the chart below shows, it has dropped 30% from early August 2026 and it has fallen 47% from February 2025.

Pinnacle describes itself as a global multi-asset investment management platform. It’s substantially domestic and expanding globally, as it compounds earnings and cash flow generation through cycles.

It makes investments in fund managers, called affiliates. It has a portfolio of 19 affiliates across public and private markets, spanning asset classes, investment styles and geographies.

I think it’s a great time to invest in Pinnacle for a few different reasons, starting with the dividend yield on offer.

Strong passive income

The business decided to pay an annual dividend per share of 60 cents in FY26, the same as FY25.

At the time of writing, that dividend yield is 4.4% excluding franking credits and 5.7% including franking credits.

That’s not the biggest dividend yield on the ASX, but it’s a solid starting point for an ASX dividend stock, and I expect further growth as the company’s funds under management (FUM) grow.

Strong funds under management performance

The company is performing strongly for shareholders, with total FY26 net inflows of $33.4 billion, up 44% year over year.

This enabled the business to report that aggregate affiliate FUM grew 28% to $229.4 billion. The rise in FUM helped aggregate affiliate base fees grow 35% to $1 billion.

Pinnacle also reported that net profit after tax (NPAT) grew 31% to $176.7 million and earnings per share (EPS) rose 25% to 78.1 cents.

Management believes that the business should be able to compound EPS at a high rate.

The company highlights that it’s purposefully expanding into larger international markets, through a growing global affiliate presence, expanding its globally relevant product suite and increasing global distribution footprint.

I expect the business will be able to generate growth through ongoing performance of existing affiliate strategies, they can launch new strategies and the Pinnacle portfolio can expand with new names.

Pinnacle notes that 81% of affiliate strategies with a track record of five years or longer have outperformed over a five-year period.

Pinnacle share price valuation

The ASX dividend stock is now valued at less than 16x FY27’s estimated earnings, according to forecast on Commsec.

The projection on Commsec then suggests the business could grow its EPS by 20% in FY28 and increase it by a further 21% in FY29. In other words, it’s suggested that the business could deliver significant earnings compounding over the next few years, which is exactly what could drive the dividend higher.

The predictions suggest the business’ dividend could grow by 70% between FY26 to FY29, which would be pleasing to see.

The post 1 ASX dividend stock down 47% I’d buy right now appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor Tristan Harrison has positions in Pinnacle Investment Management Group. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has positions in and has recommended Pinnacle Investment Management Group. The Motley Fool Australia has positions in and has recommended Pinnacle Investment Management Group. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

Bell Potter has been busy running the rule over a number of ASX 200 shares.

The good news for two of them is that they have just been upgraded to buy ratings on Monday.

Here’s what the broker is recommending to clients:

Capricorn Metals Ltd (ASX: CMM)

The first ASX 200 share that has been upgraded is gold miner Capricorn Metals.

Bell Potter was pleased to see the company complete the Karlawinda Expansion Project on time. It said:

The new circuit is currently processing low grade ore and will transition to run of mine (ROM) grade ore over the next week, lifting to steady state throughput of 6.5Mtpa and a guided 150kozpa run-rate. This delivers the first leg of growth for CMM, lifting production from the KGP’s prior guided run-rate of ~120kozpa.

In response, the broker has upgraded the ASX 200 share to a buy rating with an improved price target of $18.10 (from $18.05). Based on its current share price of $15.40, this implies potential upside of almost 18%.

Commenting on its investment thesis, Bell Potter said:

CMM’s track record of capital efficient project development and operation can result in growth being priced in early and good value entry points to the stock hard to find. The current pullback offers such an entry point, in our view. We make minor upgrades to our FY27 forecasts, but the KGP completion is largely consistent with our expectations. EPS changes in this report are: FY27: +3%, FY28: 0%, FY29: 0%. Our NPV-based valuation lifts incrementally to $18.10/sh. We upgrade our rating to Buy, following a recent pullback in the share price. CMM is unhedged and debt free, fully funded to grow production from ~120kozpa to +400kozpa in FY29.

Codan Ltd (ASX: CDA)

Another ASX 200 share that has been upgraded by Bell Potter is metal detector manufacturer Codan.

According to the note, the broker has upgraded its shares to a buy rating with an improved price target of $60.00 (from $54.00).

Based on its current share price of $52.25, this implies potential upside of 15% for investors over the next 12 months.

Commenting on the upgrade, Bell Potter said:

We lift EBIT +0%/+4%/+8% across FY27/28/29e on higher Unmanned and Minelab Africa revenue and lower corporate costs, partly offset by lower Minelab ROW sales. TP rises on a target EBIT multiple of 45x, up from 40x, partly offset by a higher risk free rate.

We upgrade to Buy from Hold. Notwithstanding potential supply chain constraints in global electronics which CDA is “monitoring”, we expect current rapidly expanding production rates of Group 2 UAS to drive Communications revenue upgrades in 1H27/FY27. CDA trades at 32x EBIT, a full valuation without consensus upgrades.

The post 2 ASX 200 shares just upgraded to buy ratings appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Monday
• This ASX 200 share hit an all-time high yesterday. Is the sky the limit?
• Here are the top 10 ASX 200 shares today
• Viva Energy, Codan, AMP shares reach 52-week highs: How much higher can they go?
• Capricorn Metals shares: Karlawinda Expansion Project completes on time

Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro 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.