Sell RENK Shares? Buy Standard Lithium or Globex Mining After the Correction?

Standard Lithium: Will these announcements bring the turnaround?

Standard Lithium shares have performed poorly this year. The momentum has simply run out for what is likely the most exciting lithium explorer in the US. The stock has lost over 20% this year. In the past five trading days alone, it has plummeted by over 10%. Investors have been waiting in vain for months for news that the flagship project has been financed. Although progress on its South-West Arkansas project was recently reported, this is not enough for the market. Together with the Norwegian energy company Equinor, Standard Lithium is driving forward the development of a facility for the production of battery-grade lithium carbonate in the US through the Smackover Lithium joint venture. The goal is to begin commercial production in 2029. In the first phase of expansion, approximately 22,500 tons of battery-grade lithium carbonate are to be produced annually.

On May 14, the company announced that the project had successfully completed the US Department of Energy's environmental review under the National Environmental Policy Act. The agency found no significant environmental impacts and issued a "Finding of No Significant Impact" (FONSI). According to Standard Lithium, this eliminates the need for further state approvals before a final investment decision. The environmental review was also related to a USD 225 million funding package from the US Department of Energy, already committed in 2025, to support the project's first phase.

Just one week later, the next operational step followed. Smackover Lithium signed an EPCM contract with Wood Group USA for the development of the project's upstream drilling and brine production field. The plan includes 4 drilling sites with a total of 12 production and 10 injection wells, along with a pipeline and a gas-gathering system. Wood is specifically tasked with providing engineering, procurement, and construction management services. Work will initially begin under a limited release to prepare for permitting, detailed design, and procurement.

In parallel, the joint venture continues to work on off-take agreements, project financing, and additional construction and engineering contracts. A final investment decision is still targeted for 2026. In addition, the company expects to finalize a separate EPCC contract in the second quarter for the central processing plant, where direct lithium extraction and conversion to lithium carbonate will take place.

The performance of Standard Lithium's stock is one reason to consider a diversified portfolio in the exploration sector. Globex Mining, for example, offers such a portfolio.

Globex Mining: Numerous Potential Catalysts

Globex Mining's stock has gained over 20% so far this year. However, the stock has corrected in recent weeks. If the stock were to reach its March high again, shareholders could look forward to a 40% gain. And a price of EUR 1.80 seems entirely realistic. The Canadian resource incubator pursues a comparatively defensive business model within the exploration sector. Instead of focusing on a single large-scale project, the company acts as a project generator and royalty company with a regional focus on North America. Globex acquires promising resource projects in established mining regions and subsequently licenses them to exploration companies through option agreements.

Globex now holds over 100 royalties and numerous option agreements with partner companies. The major advantage of this business model is that it allows the company to benefit from exploration successes without bearing the costs. The portfolio is broadly diversified across gold, silver, copper, nickel, rare earths, antimony, manganese, and industrial minerals. In addition, the projects are at various stages of development, ranging from early-stage exploration to projects with feasibility studies.

Globex Mining has a large number of potential catalysts for the coming quarters. The company points to approximately 300,000 m of planned drilling on royalty, option, and proprietary projects. Key milestones include the feasibility study for Mont Sorcier, a potential early-stage resource at the Bald Hill antimony project, and numerous drilling programs by partners such as Emperor Metals, Cartier, TomaGold, and Albright Metals. At the same time, Globex is also advancing exploration on its own gold projects, including Central Cadillac/Wood, Shortt Lake, and Eldrich.

There are good reasons to buy the stock. Investors are not banking on a single exploration success, but rather on a broadly diversified network of potential value drivers. Added to this is a strong, debt-free balance sheet, low share dilution, and an experienced management team with decades of expertise in the commodities sector. The strategic positioning in Canada's major gold belts and in critical commodities such as antimony and rare earths, which are gaining increasing geopolitical significance, also appears particularly attractive.

RENK: Sell Now?

Is it time to exit RENK stock? Given that the stock has lost nearly 50% of its value since October 2025 and the company is actually in good operational shape, selling does not seem plausible. But when a major shareholder sells, one should naturally question the move.

The announcement on Tuesday caused a stir in the financial media. KNDS has unexpectedly cashed in part of its stake in RENK. As part of an accelerated bookbuilding process, the European defence group sold 5.8 million RENK shares at EUR 44.95 each, raising EUR 269 million. Following the transaction, KNDS's stake in RENK drops from approximately 15.8% to about 10%.

Officially, KNDS cites the move as a way to strengthen its balance sheet ahead of the planned IPO. However, analysts at mwb research find this explanation unconvincing. Given an order backlog of EUR 23.5 billion, new order intake of EUR 11.2 billion, and high advance payments, the cash inflow from the share sale does not appear necessary. Furthermore, the analysts raise several questions. Why was the German federal government apparently not involved as a potential buyer, even though it had signalled interest in strategically important defence assets? It is equally surprising that a long-term, committed anchor shareholder would sell more than a third of its stake. Furthermore, KNDS had only increased its stake in RENK from 6.7% to 15.84% in July 2025. Analysts see this as a possible indication that KNDS may set different strategic priorities in the future and may no longer view land systems as the most important growth driver.

Despite the surprise, the investment case for RENK remains intact, according to mwb research. Analysts expect RENK to continue to see strong growth in the coming years. Following the expected revenue of EUR 1.54 billion in the current year, revenue is projected to reach EUR 2.14 billion by 2028. For EBITDA, experts forecast an increase from EUR 350 million in 2026 to EUR 481 million in 2028. mwb continues to recommend RENK shares as a "Buy". The price target is EUR 53. The stock did not react negatively to the announcement and is currently trading at around EUR 48.

Buying shares of Globex shares is a logical move for investors seeking lower-risk exposure to the attractive resource exploration sector. The timing also looks favourable following the recent correction. The overall environment for defence stocks has improved in recent days; however, a sustained upward trend is not yet evident. At present, buying Standard Lithium shares does not appear compelling.