** Shares of Gold Road Resources GOR.AX rise as much as 3.4% to a record high of A$2.882

** Bell Potter raises the price target of the gold producer's stock to A$3.20 from A$2.95 after the co rejected an offer from South Africa's Gold Fields GFI.J

** GOR's last closing share price (A$2.79) implies that the market is not convinced a transaction is likely, but leaves a return for investors with more optimism - brokerage

** Says first offer unlikely to be the best and GFI's action's might bring co back to the negating table

** Retains "buy" rating for the stock

** Analysts on average rate the stock "hold"; median price target set at A$2.68 - LSEG data

** Stock up 38.5% YTD, including current session's moves

(Reporting by Manasi Dasa Sundeep in Bengaluru)

((Manasi.DasaSundeep@thomsonreuters.com;))