You would think record gold prices would be doing wonders for Northern Star Resources Ltd (ASX: NST) shares.

Instead, the gold miner has gone backwards.

Northern Star finished Thursday down 1.40% at $22.54, leaving the share price around 16% lower in 2026 and well below its recent highs.

That’s not really what investors would expect with gold trading at such strong levels.

But there could be a bit more going on here than just the gold price.

US activist investor Elliott Investment Management has been building its position in Northern Star, and it clearly sees room for improvement.

I think that makes the next few months worth watching closely.

Elliott wants to see some changes

The US activist investor has been pushing Northern Star to strengthen its board and take a look at how the business is run.

Last month, Elliott said:

During a period of record gold prices, a company with assets of this calibre should be among its sector’s strongest performers.

It also argued that Northern Star’s shareholder returns had lagged peers because of execution and governance failures.

Northern Star has pushed back. Outgoing chairman Michael Chaney said Elliott had made demands “to which no responsible board would agree”.

With that said, the boardroom battle could become more interesting over the next 2 months.

Director nominations close on 16 September, while the annual general meeting (AGM) is scheduled for 18 November.

A new CEO is coming too

There’s also a fair bit happening inside Northern Star itself.

Suresh Vadnagra is due to take over as chief executive on 5 October following Stuart Tonkin’s departure last month.

That means the company will soon have a new CEO, a new chairman and a major activist investor demanding better results.

I think that puts plenty of pressure on the new leadership team to show investors what it can do differently.

And there is clearly room for the share price to recover.

Northern Star is still up around 8% over the past year, but the shares remain well below the levels they reached in March.

Could Northern Star shares recover?

Brokers aren’t exactly on the same page when it comes to Northern Star.

TipRanks shows an average 12-month price target of $23.40, which is only around 4% above Thursday’s closing price.

But a few analysts see a lot more upside.

UBS recently upgraded Northern Star to buy and lifted its price target to $29.40, while Jefferies has a $27 target and Morgans is at $25.

If UBS is right, Northern Star shares could climb around 30% from here.

Personally, I wouldn’t buy the stock just because Elliott has built a huge position.

The new team will need to improve execution and get shareholders back onside before I’d take another look.

The post Down 16%, could this $2 billion activist bet wake up Northern Star shares? 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.

Investors on the hunt for outsized returns might want to check out the ASX shares in this article.

That’s because the team at Morgans believes they could rise by 48% to 90% over the next 12 months. 

Here’s what the broker is recommending:

Aroa Biosurgery Ltd (ASX: ARX)

Morgans is feeling even more positive about this ASX share following the release of interim results for the MASTRR Registry.

In response, the broker has retained its buy rating on the medical device company’s shares with a 79 cents price target. This implies potential upside of approximately 48% for investors over the next 12 months. It commented:

ARX has reported positive interim results from the MASTRR Registry showing low infection rates which we expect will support greater surgeon adoption. We sit towards the upper end of the FY27 guidance which has revenue forecast to grow at 18% (mid-point). We have made no changes to forecasts or target price. The share price continues to languish despite operational and clinical progress; with 45% upside to our target price, we think ARX is undervalued. Buy.

EchoIQ Ltd (ASX: EIQ)

This medical device company’s shares have crashed deep into the red this week following a disappointing US FDA update.

While many investors have decided to hit the sell button, Morgans thinks they should be sticking with the company. 

As a result, it has retained its buy rating with a reduced price target of $1.10. This implies potential upside of approximately 95% for investors. It said:

EIQ has received a Not Substantially Equivalent (NSE) determination on its initial EchoSolv HF 510(k), despite an extensively validated dataset generated in line with FDA guidance. The device cannot be marketed under this application as submitted, pushing back the biggest near-term catalyst and revenue driver. Decision is a setback, but the timing points to a fixable problem. The determination landed day 264 of the FDA’s 270-day clock, leaving the agency no scope to seek further information and forcing a decision on what it had. Management confirms a single outstanding statistical point, not a safety or clinical issue, and says the letter invites resubmission. 

We read this as a file closed on expiry rather than a technology rejected, and the 510(k) route stays open. In any case, the regulatory and timing risks have increased, reflected in a valuation cut to A$1.10. Warrants the negative market reaction but ultimately view the validity of the tool as intact, this reads as a setback in how the data was presented and assessed, not a failure of the underlying technology itself.

The post Morgans says these ASX shares could return 48% to 95% appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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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.

The ASX share market is full of opportunities that we can buy to generate returns.

Yes, many investors may be drawn to names like BHP Group Ltd (ASX: BHP), Commonwealth Bank of Australia (ASX: CBA) and Woolworths Group Ltd (ASX: WOW). But these blue-chips are unlikely to keep growing quickly because of their size and how mature their markets already are.

The fund managers of listed investment company (LIC) WAM Active Ltd (ASX: WAA) have outlined two businesses that have promising outlooks.

WAM Active looks for mispriced ASX shares. Let’s look at two of the latest businesses that were highlighted within the portfolio.

Dxn Ltd (ASX: DXN)

The first company that Wilson Asset Management (WAM) talked about was DXN, a prefabricated data centre manufacturer and operator, scaled across the Asia-Pacific region.

WAM noted that the DXN share price increased in August after the company announced a $4.1 million contract with Melbourne Airport to design, manufacture and commission a prefabricated edge data centre facility.

The fund manager also noted that DXN’s FY26 result also highlighted a record order backlog of $40.9 million and growing demand for its artificial intelligence- ready modular data centre solutions.

DXN also secured its second AI high-performance computing contract, providing confidence in its growth outlook.

Overall, WAM believes that the ASX share is well-positioned to benefit from accelerating investment in AI infrastructure, supported by an expanding order book, increasing manufacturing capacity and a growing presence across the Asia Pacific region.

Cobre Ltd (ASX: CBE)

Cobre was the other ASX share that Wilson Asset Management mentioned from the WAM Active portfolio. WAM described Cobre as a global copper company focused on exploration and production in Chile’s Atacama region and Botswana’s Kalahari Copper Belt.

The fund manager noted that the Cobre share price rose strongly during the month after several positive corporate developments.

Pleasingly, the company was included in the MSCI Global Micro Cap Index, which is expected to enhance the ASX share’s profile among international investors and support broader institutional ownership. Its inclusion took effect on 1 September 2026.

On 10 August, Rothschild & Co was appointed as a strategic advisor to further develop the company’s capital markets positioning.

At the end of the month, Cobre also strengthened its position in the Sierra Atacama copper project by securing majority ownership and increasing its exposure to future production and cash flow.

Looking ahead, WAM continues to see value in Cobre, driven by its growing exposure to the Sierra Atacama copper project and multiple operational catalysts in the coming months.

Of course, these aren’t the only ASX shares out there that could be great buys today.

The post Fund managers: 2 exciting ASX shares that could be excellent buys appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor Tristan Harrison 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 recommended BHP Group. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.