Why Allied Nevada Gold Corp.'s Shares Popped Today

Although we don't believe in timing the market or panicking over market movements, we do like to keep an eye on big changes -- just in case they're material to our investing thesis.

What: Shares of Allied Nevada Gold Corp. jumped as much as 13% today after releasing preliminary production figures.

So what: Preliminary numbers show that fourth-quarter gold production was up 45% from a year ago, to 60,460 ounces, and silver production was up 64%, to 352,922 ounces. Initial guidance for 2014 was set at 230,000 to 250,000 ounces of gold, and 1.7 million to 2.0 million ounces of silver.

Now what: If the 2014 numbers are reached, it would be another year of nearly 50% production growth. The big question mark is if gold and silver prices will remain where they are, because results will be leveraged on the price of the underlying commodity. I'm not betting on a further rise in gold, so I won't be buying Allied Nevada today; but for those who are long gold, the increased production is a great sign for future results.

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The article Why Allied Nevada Gold Corp.'s Shares Popped Today originally appeared on Fool.com.

Fool contributor Travis Hoium has no position in any stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

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