A push by the world’s biggest gold miners to get even bigger will likely have a knock-on effect among their competitors, adding new vigor to an industry that failed to inspire investor support in 2018.
The megamerger mania now under way for Newmont Mining Corp., Barrick Gold Corp. and Goldcorp Inc. is likely to result in some of their assets being sold, helping to diversify portfolios for other miners and boosting the interest of investors. More importantly, it could force mid-tier companies to team up in order to successfully compete.
“This is a competitive marketplace in terms of attracting capital, and you have to make a decision at some point,” Michael Siperco, an analyst at Macquarie Capital Markets, said in a telephone interview. “Yamana, Kinross, Iamgold — what’s the strategy here in terms of not getting absolutely left behind?”
In a recent report, Siperco said that megamergers among the largest miners could give them access to capital that will let them out-bid everyone else for junior explorers and developers that are essential to replenishing pipelines.
Meanwhile, in comparing the market capitalization with the valuations of Australian companies including Newcrest Mining Ltd., Evolution Mining Ltd. and Northern Star Resources Ltd., “the question has to be, what’s next?” Siperco said.
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