The Northern Star Resources Ltd (ASX: NST) share price is outperforming the benchmark today in a strong finish to a rather wobbly week.
Northern Star shares closed yesterday at $10.15 and are currently trading for $10.30, up 1.48%.
By comparison the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is up 0.6% today.
Why is the Northern Star share price outperforming?
It's not just Northern Star shares posting strong gains today.
Fellow ASX 200 gold share Evolution Mining Ltd (ASX: EVN) is up 1.54% today, while Newcrest Mining Ltd (ASX: NCM) shares have gained 1.7%.
All up, the S&P/ASX All Ordinaries Gold Index (ASX: XGD), which contains ASX gold shares outside of the ASX 200, is up 1.64% at the time of writing.
Among other factors, Northern Star shares look to be getting a boost from an uptick in gold prices. An ounce of gold is currently trading for US$1,934 per troy ounce. That's up from US$1,925 yesterday, according to data from Bloomberg.
Its shares could also be getting a lift from a positive assessment from broker Morgan Stanley.
As the Motley Fool reported yesterday, Morgan Stanley has a bullish outlook for the price of gold, and Northern Star ranks among its top two picks among ASX gold shares.
According to Morgan Stanley:
NST has the highest FCF [free cash flow] generation of our coverage and offers the most sensitivity to upside gold prices, with lowest downside due to well-priced hedges. NST also has a near-term catalyst with its brownfield expansion at KCGM.
How has Northern Star been tracking?
With gold prices on the upswing, the Northern Star share price has gained almost 10% since the opening bell of 4 January, compared to a year-to-date loss of 1.3% posted by the ASX 200.
