Duketon Mining's (ASX:DKM) maiden drilling at the Barlee gold project in Western Australia returned promising initial results that highlight its "strong regional position within a proven gold district," Euroz Hartleys said in a Wednesday note.

Intersections at the Astro prospect include 24 meters at 0.8 grams per tonne grade of gold from 24 meters, eight meters at 0.8 g/t from 52 meters, and seven meters at 0.7 g/t from 76 meters. Additionally, near-surface results at the Gromit prospect include four meters at 0.5 g/t from 16 meters, and eight meters at 0.3 g/t from 28 meters.

Roughly 70% of the current Barlee tenure is still untested by ultra-fine fraction geochemistry, and an additional 12 kilometers of prospective strike to the south is under application, which shows "substantial scope to expand the project," Euroz Hartleys said.

Gold-related merger and acquisition activity across the Southern Cross district has been prolific, and any potential discoveries at Barlee "could be highly value‐accretive and may attract future corporate interest," the investment firm said.

Euroz Hartleys maintained a speculative buy rating on Duketon Mining with a price target of AU$0.75 per share.

Duketon shares shed 8% in recent Wednesday trade.