11:30 AM EDT, 07/11/2024 (MT Newswires) -- New Found Gold ( NFGC ) on Thursday reported results from exploration drilling into the Appleton Fault Zone at its Queensway project in Newfoundland, intercepting nine new gold zones and doubling the known vertical extent of gold mineralization.

Initial deep drilling confirmed the presence of high-grade gold mineralization extending down to 820 meters depth, the deepest gold intercepts identified to date, the company said.

The nine new zones were intersected in three holes, with six of the zones containing visible gold. Individual gold assay values were as high as 42.0 grams per tonne (g/t) gold and 57.1 g/t gold.

The zones occur on both the east and west sides of the Appleton Fault Zone and occur over a strike length of 3 kilometers.

"Initial deep drilling results has confirmed our overarching thesis that Queensway is a deep-rooted mineralized gold system with a broad footprint that extends to depth," said Melissa Render, vice president of exploration at New Found. "We are not only encouraged by the number of mineralized intersections, but also by the extent of the mineralization, with some zones spanning up to 66m in length."

New Found maintained its Outperform rating and $8 price target from National Bank of Canada following the news.

"Confidence may grow if NFG can first establish continuity of mineralization at shallower levels where nearly 600,000 meters of drilling have been completed and produce a maiden mineral resource estimate to anchor expectations of subsequent extensions on strike or depth," the bank said in a Thursday note.

New Found shares were last seen up $0.05 to $4.20 on the TSX Venture Exchange.

Price: 4.20, Change: +0.05, Percent Change: +1.20