Berenberg Updates Antofagasta Model After Q3 Production Report

08:16 AM EDT, 10/16/2026 (MT Newswires) -- Berenberg updated its model for Antofagasta (ANTO.L) after the copper miner's third-quarter production report and its revised cash cost guidance for full-year 2026. "Total copper volumes came in at 152kt (versus our 170kt estimate), with 44koz of gold (versus our 54koz estimate) and 2.9kt of molybdenum (versus our 3.1kt estimate)," the research firm said Friday, noting "weaker" volumes at the Los Pelambres mine in Chile, due to winter weather events affecting mining activity. Analysts also flagged higher-than-expected group gross cash costs before by-product credits for the quarter, driven by elevated costs at both Los Pelambres and Centinela. Berenberg also took note of the company's increased 2026 guidance for cash costs before by-product credits, now $2.6 to $2.7 per pound from $2.4 to $2.6 per pound, as diesel prices remain elevated into the second half. As such, analysts raised their 2026 sales, EBITDA, and EPS projections and lowered those for 2027. The stock's price target was also reduced to 45 pounds sterling from 46 pounds, with an unchanged buy rating.