Why Orla Mining Stock Soared on Wednesday

Gold extraction company Orla Mining's (NYSEMKT: ORLA) certainly felt like it was worth its weight in the precious metal on Hump Day. Its shares zoomed almost 14% higher that trading session, due mostly to an estimates-topping third-quarter earnings release. With that tailwind at its back, Orla easily beat the marginal increase of the S&P 500 (SNPINDEX: ^GSPC).

A golden quarter

Orla booked nearly $275 million in revenue for the period, filtering down into net income not according to generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) of $73 million, or $0.22 per share. That performance compared favorably to the average analyst estimates, which were for slightly more than $248 million in revenue, and non-GAAP (adjusted) net income of $0.18 per share.

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In operational terms, Orla produced 79,645 ounces of gold during the quarter, bringing its year-to-date total as of Sept. 30 to 205,215 ounces. It sold nearly all of this, with the respective sales figures of 78,857 ounces and 204,124 ounces in the two periods.

In its earnings release, the company quoted CEO Jason Simpson as saying of the remainder of this year, "We remain committed to finishing strong, targeting the upper end of our production guidance, and advancing our key growth projects -- further reinforcing Orla's standing as the emerging producer of choice."

Charting a straight course

As long as demand remains strong for gold, Orla and its mining peers should continue to be prosperous. In the earnings release, the company signaled a "steady as she goes" strategy moving forward, which feels like a sensible approach these days.

Eric Volkman has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.