Barrick Gold Corporation (GOLD) on Q1 2021 Results - Earnings Call Transcript
Operator: Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for standing by. This is the conference operator. Welcome to the Barrick 2021 First Quarter Results Conference Call. As a reminder, this conference call is being recorded and a replay will be available on Barrick's website later today, May 5, 2021. I would now like to turn you over to Mark Bristow, Chief Executive Officer. Please go ahead, sir. Mark Bristow: Thank you very much, and good morning and good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen, and welcome to Barrick's quarter 1 results presentation. Operator: Our first question comes from Matthew Murphy of Barclays. Matthew Murphy: Mark and team, just a question on the Turquoise Ridge. There's a mention of fall of ground at Vista Underground. Can you remind me where is this underground? And is that anything that is of concern and ground conditions? Anything that means on the outlook? Mark Bristow: Sorry, Matthew, what did you say about -- there's a reference to what? Matthew Murphy: A fall of ground. Mark Bristow: So Turquoise Ridge has -- and if you remember back at some of the other legacy operations in that region -- has a history of poor ground conditions. And so we are managing some of that at the moment, particularly around the infrastructure. And again, as we change the way we mine, with more geotech input, we're comfortable that we'll move away from that. And we've been trialing automated miners in the region. We've also improved our geological knowledge. So most definitely, we're comfortable that we'll continue to improve. The other thing about Turquoise Ridge is with the completion of #3 shaft, we'll increase our hoisting capacity, which again puts -- takes some of the pressure off, improve our backfill plans and increase our number of face availability. I'll -- Greg is actually on the call, and maybe he wants to add to that. Greg? Greg Walker: Yes, Mark. Matthew, to answer your question directly, the Vista Underground is actually at the Twin Creeks operation. It's a small underground that was -- that's operated over there. Relatively low ounces from the bigger picture. Turquoise Ridge is our main underground operation. And the fall of ground there was -- it was significant to Vista, but it's not significant. As Mark said, it was sort of isolated geotech issue. So no, it's not a major concern going forward. But just for your information, it's over at Twin Creeks, not at Turquoise Ridge. Operator: Our next question comes from Josh Wolfson of RBC Capital Markets. Joshua Wolfson: Mark, I can't help but notice there's been a number of announcements lately across different jurisdictions on the resource nationalism side, and it's not just traditional West African challenge, I guess, for Randgold. This is something that's also present in South America and also in Nevada. I'm just wondering from your perspective, and obviously, given your decades of experience, what trends you're seeing? And if this is a greater risk today than perhaps what you've seen in the past? Mark Bristow: Josh, of course, in times like this where there hasn't been much economic activity and the gold industry, of course, benefits from times like this because the gold price is up. We've certainly managed expectations and also supported our host countries and host states by advancing some of our taxes. I would also point out, as one of the things that I've spoken to you about and shared with the market, is it's -- the gold industry has a real responsibility as an insurance policy along with the -- and when I say gold industry, the entire industry, and of course, as miners, we benefit and participate in that. It's also important that we continue to build long-term relationships with our stakeholders. And as you -- as I've pointed out in many occasion, there's this short termism that arises all the time. So last time post the global financial crisis, there was this big demand for growth. And then when the industry went out there and bought anything that it could and resulted in value destruction, then there was an enormous amount of wringing of hands and concern, and that led to more demand from the industry as far as paying out dividends. And we've seen again this time. And so we have to put a balance on this, because when fund managers demand big payouts and dividends after a period where the industry hasn't spent a lot of money in investing in its own future and then gets disturbed by the fact that other core stakeholders like host countries, of which we are actually mining their national assets, it's an imbalance. And us in the middle as managers of these businesses and the industry have to balance that. And so as you've seen, Barrick has done that extremely well in -- following the crisis in Tanzania. We recently walked back a situation in Papua New Guinea that is now going to deliver on the split in economics, a fair split on economics. And again, we are going to have to do more of that as an industry if we want to remain relevant and be able to operate across the globe in some of these developing countries. And as you point out, Josh, it's not only developing countries and emerging markets anymore, it's everywhere. Joshua Wolfson: Okay. And just one other question on Porgera, the comment about looking to revise guidance once that advances. Is it fair to say that the production impact for 2021 will be pretty limited? This is just more on the capital side in terms of the cost to restart? Mark Bristow: Yes. That's a fair -- I mean the one thing you want to do is get this right. And it's been a tough negotiation. We need to get this right. It is a world-class asset. It's in a very challenging geographical area as well as a geopolitical area. And so and there are a lot of things that I'd like to see us improve on, one particularly, the license to operate in our community relations, our relationship with landowners. And those land owners were very key in getting this settlement over the line. So for me, we'd rather do that properly and make sure that we start a new Porgera that is capable of operating in a more harmonious way for another 20 years. So that's why we've made the decision to keep it out of our guidance. Operator: Our next question comes from Greg Barnes of TD Securities. Greg Barnes: Mark, I just want to -- let me touch of the tailing system at Pueblo Viejo and -- the new tailings facility and when you expect that to get permitted and actually developed. Mark Bristow: Yes. So Greg, again, this is -- these consultations, and one of the things that we're absolutely committed to is full consultation with all interested and affected parties as well as key stakeholders. And we've been doing that for a year now. We have a significant support base from the community and of course, like anything, there are detractors in the process. And we had an altercation just last week where some -- a handful of detractors rarely prevented the right of interested and invested parties, one, to hear what we've got to say, and two, to be heard, and so we are very determined to proceed with that. We believe that it's -- this expansion is in the best interest of the communities and surrounding communities as well as the provincial and national economies. Just to give you some background, since Pueblo Viejo poured its first gold in 2013, our average share of commercial tax, corporate tax that's paid to the -- correction, corporate tax that's paid to the central government treasury is 18%. So we're a very significant part of the tax structure in Dominican Republic. And also, we are, by far, the biggest employer in that region. And again, this development is going to bring our commitment. We've already far advanced in investing in economic businesses like agri business. It's a very big cacao growing area around where we're planning to build the empowerment facility. There's a lot of benefits that can come with this. It's a natural basin which is not very prospective for agriculture or anything else. And again, that a lot of those communities would benefit from a relocation program, some additional investment in their own agricultural businesses and other industries. So this is the first of our public consultation process. And we've got time, and anyway, and these sort of things, time is not as important as the communication. And of course, we are openly inviting even the detractors to sit down and engage with us and understand what we're doing. And certainly, this project has had -- even over the recent elections, had bipartisan support. So we're very confident that we'll progress this and find an outcome that will benefit everyone and be acceptable to the majority. Greg Barnes: And just to be clear, delay in the TSF expansion would not delay you ramping up the expansion of the process, correct? Mark Bristow: No. We've got capacity in our current infrastructure to be able to manage this properly. We need the TSF operational during 2025. And so we are working -- and of course, we would like to have a target nearer term so that we make sure that we do arrive at the right place before it becomes critical. Greg Barnes: I just wanted to touch on Lumwana. Given where the copper price is, the operation is generating significant free cash flow and actually challenging some of your bigger gold operations on that front. When the Randgold-Barrick merger happened, there was a lot of talk that Lumwana could be monetized. Is that something that now is off the table in your view, and you want to maintain that exposure to copper? Mark Bristow: Yes. So Greg, one thing that you can't accuse ourself is selling anything for nothing. And we have a very good understanding of what value mineral resources come with. And Lumwana was one of those projects where certainly, we looked at it. It had a long, bad history. It was very marginal but as we looked at it, we certainly had inbound interest in acquiring it. But nobody who showed an interest came anywhere near what we believed it was worth. And then the team that we put in there, and we've reshaped it to be like our AME operations, majority, national management, very focused on profits and efficiencies. We reduced the mining costs by nearly 50%. And we made it a very profitable business. It's still a low-grade operation, but it's a big operation. And so like all low-grade operations, when you have a big run-up in the commodity price, it really does -- it's highly geared, and it really delivers significant increased cash flow. So -- and what we've demonstrated to ourselves, both with Lumwana and Jabal Sayid, is we certainly know that -- our basic approach to mining. We understand the copper business. We've proved that we can operate both high-grade complex underground mines, copper mines in the form of Jabal Sayid and also low-grade super pits like Lumwana. So -- and we see this as giving us a real in to the understanding of the Central African copper belt. And again, I think with some of the geopolitical developments in South America, you're going to see a pivot to some of the other copper-endowed geologies of the world. And we've got that interest in and knowledge in the Pakistan region, which is highly prospective, although, again, a challenging address. And now with the work that we've done in the Central copper belt, we're much more comfortable about continuing to explore and invest in that part of the world. And we also have a joint venture in the making with Ma'aden in the Arabian Shield. And we've been working with the Egyptians on their latest bid round as well. So that's also copper/gold. So we'll continue to find our own gold and gold/copper opportunities. Operator: Our next question comes from of BMO Capital Markets. Unidentified Analyst: I guess I just wanted to ask you about the presentation that you just gave. You've shown a lot of different exploration opportunities and initiatives that you're working on. Can you maybe help just to cut through a little bit, what might we expect to see in your next reserve update and your next life of mine plan or new guidance? Can you maybe give us an idea of which of your exploration opportunities might start to show up in your numbers sooner? Mark Bristow: So Jackie, as you know, in the legacy Randgold assets, we had a system that's well established, and we replaced gold and -- that we mined on a regular basis, not always every year, but most years. And we've also got visibility for Loulo-Gounkoto and Kibali. We can show how we're going to convert ounces 2, 3 years ahead of us. What we've been working on in the greater Barrick group now is building that same sort of geological competence to be able to deliver that, and integrating and bringing back the geologists into the business of mining. And we've made a great progress in Tanzania, again, where we can see that we will continue to replace the ounces that we're mining and certainly add to that. The exciting one for me is Nevada and the Nevada gold mines and the tremendous progress that we've made with, first of all, integrating the exploration group back into partnering with the mineral resource management group. And as you would have picked up in the messaging today is that we're starting to look at 15-year horizons in Nevada gold mines. Because remember, that is a very big operation, bigger than most mining companies. And again, it consumes a lot of gold. So we need to be investing, and we need to have a longer runway in being able to manage that business successfully. And we're certainly seeing that now. And we -- the objective of showing you the future is important because again, what we -- what you can expect is the continued roll-forward of our 10-year plans. And as I've pointed out to you before, we've got a 2 or 2 about years of higher capital as we recapitalize some of our Tier One assets. And then really, we see our portfolio, as we've got it today, really grows cash flow at any gold price. Because why? Because the sustaining capital comes down to a run rate of between $1 billion and $1.2 billion. And really that allows free cash flow growth. Of course, that 10-year plan is a foundational base to our full commitment to grow further value for our owners and other stakeholders. And that will come from new exploration discoveries. Again, Nevada is very special in that the size of ore bodies that you require to deliver multimillion ounce discoveries are quite small relatively. And we still believe there's enormous potential to discover, not only to extend and replace the ounces we mine on a brownfields basis, but to make significant greenfields exploration. And that requires a real investment in R&D, the real creative side of geology and exploration. And then, of course, there's the easier projects to grow like Pueblo Viejo, where unlocking their constraint on the storage facility really unlocks an ore body that's already drilled out. And then the Veladero's is just more cash flow effectively. It's not right up in our number one part of our components, but we are very committed. And again, one small or moderate discovery within tracking distance of Veladero is very material for us. And again, I need to remind you, we've got a full processing facility which can manage just about any type of metallurgical ore that you can imagine in that part of the world, whether it's copper, copper/gold or gold, or silver, by the way. And so our geologists are -- we're challenging our geologists to get beyond just drilling on the edges of ore bodies and go out there. And so the first couple of big holes we've drilled, the one I reported to you on Lama East, is one of those results. And then we are very busy in other parts of South America as we build our portfolio and continue to look to open up new frontiers, just as we are doing in the AME region. And of course, we've got Donlin, which we spoke about, and that is a big resource, still a bit of a way to go before we are absolutely clear about the geology. And then I would like to believe that our settlement with Papua New Guinea and are proving to the market that we know how to manage even in that part of the world, because that part of the world is largely under explored, and again, offers enormous opportunity to discover Tier One assets. So that's why -- and again, I think we -- our first focus, get this business back on track, tidy up the portfolio to quality assets, deal with the legacy liabilities, which we've made progress on. We have certainly haven't completely dealt with all of them, but we are dealing with them. And then now that we've got that highly competent, very professional and agile leadership, and now it's time to focus on our future. And that's something that, as you know, I really believe, and we've now got the balance sheet, the people and the vision to be able to continue to build on our sustainably profitable strategy. Operator: Our next question comes from Tanya Jakusconek of Scotiabank. Tanya Jakusconek: Just a couple of questions, if I could. I just wanted to circle back to Porgera. Just wanted to ask, how long would the ramp-up take to get to full capacity? Is 6 months an appropriate ramp up? Mark Bristow: Tanya, yes, so 6 months to really get this to everyone onto -- on track to start the operation. And then another 6 months. In fact, in our agreement, in our framework agreement, we've got 7 months to get to sort of 80% of our targeted production. So that's the sort of guidance we've agreed to. The big -- that is not the challenge. The challenge is to get from where we are today to starting the operation. And that's our big focus now because there's quite a lot of work to do on settling a special mining license, agreeing on the full implementation agreement, and dealing with all the various agreements that one has to negotiate and settle to be able to start operations. We have -- Barrick and BNL has the operatorship, and so it's very much in our control. But this time around, we have a very equal partner in the form of the state to -- and with a real interest in this asset to be able to work with us to get this thing done. So that's our time frame. So if everything works really well, we'll be there and starting to ramp up in quarter 4. If it knocks on a bit, we might only start that ramp-up in the beginning of next year. Tanya Jakusconek: And just the cost that you and your partner are going to have to incur to get this mine up. Can you just give us a size of what those could be? And would this be equity accounted? Mark Bristow: So it's -- we invest in it. We're funding it, and we recoup it as part of our -- so we recoup the capital and then after capital, we share the economics 53%, 47% in favor of the government. And that's the key, is the economic split for us, as you know. And of course, we've got the operatorship. So it's around $300 million, including the money that we've already spent to get it back up to production. Mark Hill is on the call. Mark, have I got it more or less right? Mark Hill: Yes, Mark, that's right. That's correct. Tanya Jakusconek: And when it's up back, Graham, it's going to be equity accounted? Mark Bristow: I just explained to you that there are investors, then we get recouped the capital. Graham Shuttleworth: Yes, we'll move from proportional consolidation to equity accounting when the change goes through. Tanya Jakusconek: Okay. Great. And if I could just move to the DRC, and I'm just trying to understand and appreciate, Mark, that we've got a new, now responsible, cabinet in place. I'm just trying to understand, just your joint venture partner has given us some time lines in terms of getting cash out of the DRC. We were supposed to see this $500 million payment on a 100% basis coming through in March and then sort of installments thereafter. Can you just give us an idea of what is happening? Is that no longer the case, that we're not going to have installments anymore? And also, my understanding was that we needed to have a parliament approval if we wanted to put a permanent mechanism in place to get the money out seamlessly. Can you just clarify some of this for me? Mark Bristow: So Tanya, let me just explain to you. So the -- first of all, DRC doesn't have exchange control approval. So -- and it's never had it. There's a glitch in the 2018 mining code, which, by the way, we all operate under protest. And on top of that, our joint venture partner is correct because we give them that guidance. But the expectation of moving from this paralyzed government situation which we've endured for 8 months now, a little bit over 8 months, has been -- we have been expecting it to happen and it hasn't happened as quickly as we expected. And even the appointment of the new cabinet, which as I indicated is now supported by a majority in Parliament and in the Senate, that cabinet was only sworn in last Thursday evening. So they've had their first cabinet meeting. On top of that, we have had a special committee formed by decree to engage with the industry, not only Kibali, and to ensure that we -- that in the absence of the authority to do such, that we do have an authorized -- what's the right word, committee authority to be able to process and engage in finding a solution. And really, the solution is about -- we don't want to -- none of us want to do special deals in anything. We want the right to repatriate funds, not to take them out just because we feel like taking them out. They are monies that have been returned as part of our revenue and our commitment to returning the revenue from sales to the DRC, but we want to use them to do 3 things. Of course, it's very important we pay back the debt. That debt comes with, in most instances interest. So it's in everyone's interest, excuse the pun, to pay the debt back so that we can get into a bigger tax position, everyone benefits. The second part is we want to use those funds to be able to pay for services that we purchase from outside the country. And the third and final one, when all that's said and done, is we want to pay dividends because that's why we've invested in the first place. And when you pay dividends, of course, the in-country shareholders benefit as well as the government and treasury because of the withholding taxes. So -- and so there's no argument about that philosophy and it's just about making sure that we do it in a proper way. And as you can imagine, this is an important factor for all miners in the DRC now because even the copper miners after the full-up in the copper price are generating free cash and want to be able to - and then there's been a lot of capital spent in the Katanga region as we did in Kibali. So that's the background. And the money is in our private bank accounts. It's not under threat. No one's trying to take it from us. It's been a very cordial and professional engagement, and we're absolutely confident that we'll get to the point where we return to the normal operating process which we have all become accustomed to until the 2018 transition. Tanya Jakusconek: Okay. So we shouldn't be concerned whether these banks actually have your funds on deposit. They -- you say it's in your private bank account and you can see it. Mark Bristow: And we're not going to have to apply for piecemeal applications. And that's what -- something that I've been very clear about is that we want a lasting solution because again, when you talk to the new government and the various ministers as well as the President's office, we were very outspoken about the 2018 code and the fact that it was an attempt to sort of aggressively harvest something that hadn't even been invested in. And now we've got 2 years on or a bit more than 2 years on. And we've got all these super commodity prices, and we've seen no investment into the DRC. So there's a real desire and a commitment to work at attracting new investments. And I must say the new Prime Minister is a young and energetic and very focused person from the industry. And I've got high hopes for the mining industry in the DRC. Tanya Jakusconek: Okay. And so should I think of it then that we are going to be getting this money out in installments, as was mentioned previously? And we don't... Mark Bristow: You'll see it coming out. Whether you've got -- of course, if you've got lots of debt -- I mean loans, it will come out quickly because we want to pay those loans off as quickly as possible. And everyone understands there's a benefit to all the stakeholders, both government and shareholders. And then the rest, we want to be able to continually work with it. Because the DRC has never been a country where you worry about your money because it's never had exchange controls. And so people don't make a big fuss about whether they've got the balance, a big balance or a small balance, in the country. We invested in U.S. dollar accounts in international banks within the DRC. So it's never under threat. And then, of course, it will support the dividend policies that will come after the debt recoupment. And we've -- what we've done in Kibali, specifically AngloGold Ashanti and ourselves, is we've certainly indicated that we would be happy to pay some advanced dividends to ensure that our partners at Kiba gets some benefit while we're paying down the loans. Tanya Jakusconek: Okay. And so can you just confirm with me, Mark, that we do not need parliamentary approval to put a permanent mechanism in place to get this out? Mark Bristow: No, because we've got the special committee opining on the process. But at the same time, we also need to take away the -- what's the right word, the contradiction in 2 articles within the law. And that, again, is part of this process. And again, we couldn't get it done when we didn't have alignment within Parliament, which we certainly have now. Tanya Jakusconek: And just one other question, just on Q2. It appears to me that with all the maintenance shutdowns that you have at several assets and better grade profiles in the second half of the year, Q2 could potentially be weaker than Q1 on a production basis. Is that something that I should think of? Is that a fair assumption? Mark Bristow: So sort of let's work backwards a bit. So really, if you look at our guidance is 4.4 to 4.7 million ounces for the year. Midyear, we're going to be at half of the bottom end of that guidance. And then we'll fill up in the second half. That's the sort of guidance we're looking at, which will take us up well into our guidance. And so a similar outlook in quarter 2 as in quarter 1. If it's softer, it's really a small percentage. It's very -- it looks very much. If you take the 4.4 million, which is the bottom end of our guidance, divided by 2, that's more or less what our target is for midyear. Tanya Jakusconek: Yes, that's where we're at, too. Good luck on the DRC. Operator: Our next question comes from Mike Parkin of National Bank. Mike Parkin: Just with Porgera and the restart. Looking at like reported COVID numbers, they seem really low. There is a fairly significant recent jump in the numbers. Boots on the ground or at least communication to staff at site, is that -- is there any kind of COVID challenge that maybe puts a little bit of additional kind of challenge on the restart at Porgera? Mark Bristow: So Mark, where I come from, I've dealt with -- and so has many members of my team, with numerous pandemics, viral pandemics, not just COVID-19. And the best way to manage these pandemics is with proper planning and some paranoia. Absolutely, we've already -- Mark Hill and the team, and we've started employing and building capacity back into Porgera itself. That's a very real focus for us, mobilizing the ability to do testing. We are -- we have testing facilities in all our operations now or right adjacent to them, some we own, and some are in partnership with the local authority or the national authority across our organization. And we are currently, as we speak, mobilizing laboratories into Porgera. And again, making sure that we have adequate antigen tests, which have become extremely accurate over time. And then it's all about reach out -- outreach, sorry, into the communities. We've started that. And we will treat Porgera as we start employing, as we do on every one of our operations. Of course, as you've seen that the international community has reached out to Papua New Guinea to support an early vaccination process. And again, I mentioned in our presentation that we have a global vaccine initiative that we're working on. And where we can, we are facilitating in countries where we aren't able to do it ourselves. And where we are able to directly invest and support countries and regions, we do that as well. So we'll -- and to think that -- definitely COVID is a challenging situation in Papua New Guinea, and again, that country is infrastructure and health facilities are not the best. And so you need to manage it with a real focus. Operator: Our next question comes from Kip Keen of S&P Global. Kip Keen: Just looking more generally on -- in terms of acquisitions, as you look at the market out there and what's available, you see, whether it's a gold or copper company, miner, they tend to look fairly conservatively at what's available out there, that is, not much. So when you look at the potential acquisitions out there, how do you view the market in terms of what's available? Mark Bristow: Yes. So Kip, it's a good observation. I don't know how to answer that question. There's still consolidation in my mind required, particularly in the gold industry. And again, but the problem is that a lot of the high-quality assets are embedded in individual companies. So it's hard to get a deal that brings a significant portfolio with it. Again, I think to be able to do value-creating M&A, one needs the support of the fund managers and investors. Otherwise, it's a better option to continue to explore. And hopefully, I've demonstrated that Barrick's real focus over the last 6 months, once we got settled, is really building that capacity for organic growth. And so -- and then on the copper side, too, there's very few pure copper plays. I think everyone, again, has been caught flat-footed in this copper price run-up. As you know, we've been talking about it for a long time, and we've certainly focused in on our portfolio to make sure that it's efficiently run and we maximize the returns on a rising copper price. Again, we've invested in additional expertise in our exploration teams to be able to build better copper exploration strategies and also through the whole spectrum of various gold, copper geological environments. And -- but at the same time, in markets, there are always opportunities to benefit from -- to deliver value. We've proved that through our history. And so Barrick and Randgold have delivered significant value through opportunistic M&A transactions throughout their history. So we're constantly looking at opportunities. We run our ruler over any new announcement, any new development. And what's important is we have the skill base and the balance sheet to be able to exploit an opportunity when it does arise, and we'll continue to do that. We are kept honest by our filters, I might add, Kip. We're not growth -- we're not obsessed with growth, but we are obsessed with creating value through growth. Kip Keen: Yes, no, fair enough. Well, in that sense, given the dearth of discovery in the past, say, 10 or so years, I mean do you put more focus on exploration? Obviously, you have done to a degree, but does it become a greater focus in the next couple of years? Mark Bristow: Yes, there's a great slide that we shared with the market when we announced the merger with Randgold Resources, where we showed the growth in Barrick and Randgold Resources and the value creation from primary discoveries, but also equally, both companies delivered significant value by post-acquisition expansions. And Kibali is a classic example in the DRC. So that's really -- that -- the best way to create real value in this industry is to make your own discovery. The second best way is to find somebody who's made the discovery and hasn't worked out how valuable it is yet. And so therein lies the importance of having a highly skilled exploration and mineral resource management team in one's business. Operator: Our next question comes from Brian MacArthur of Raymond James. Brian MacArthur: Mark maybe just following a little bit on that discussion. And we did talk a bigger copper portfolio earlier, and you mentioned Reko Diq in Pakistan. So just a couple of questions. First of all, can you remind me where we stand on that potential award settlement? And the second part, I guess, is a more philosophical question. I mean again, that project, if I remember, had decent infrastructure, pretty good geology. But it's also in a pretty tough country, but that's something, as you've said in the past, you've had the skills to deal with. Are you thinking more now philosophically that's something you might like to develop? Or you just have to wait for the settlement? Or is it something more that now that copper price is up, these things, as you said, are pretty scarce, maybe there's a partner or somebody else that can come in and develop it. Just philosophically, how you look at something like that. Mark Bristow: So as you know, one of the philosophies that we brought in Barrick in 2019 was, I'm not a big one that takes on host countries in a fight. And so we reached out on the back of what John thought and had already started, to find a solution that was constructive with the Tanzanian government. And we've been very successful in that. Again, you've seen us manage situations whether it's -- historically, we had issues over in Mali, because governments don't -- are not there for long anymore in this modern world. They move -- turn over quite a lot. I mean I think I've worked with like 20 different finance and mines ministers in Mali. And we did the same in South America, both in Argentina to build a stronger, more transparent, engaging partnership with both the Argentinian federal government, and more importantly, the San Juan provincial government. And we did the same in dealing with the legacy challenges around Pascua in Chile. And we've built a much stronger, better relationship in Chile. And whilst we've got some way to go to evaluate fully the potential of Pascua, we are busy with that. So we've done the same in Reko Diq in that there is an award out there. It's a $6 billion award. It's shared with our partners, Antofagasta. To go and try and garnish that amount of money from Pakistan, which has just been lent $6 billion by the World Bank, IMF, it's a hard task. And we believe that it's a world class asset, as you point out, Brian. And there's merit in finding a way where we will earn back our own award. And if Antofagasta can't get their head around operating there, we'll find a -- work to find a way to compromise and settle on their side of the claim. And that area has got enormous mineral endowment, both gold, copper and other rare elements and metals. So -- and as I've experienced in my professional life, when I first started out in Sub-Saharan Africa, it was almost a no-go place. And today, it's very easy to operate in. So the world moves on, and I think that we've had very constructive discussions with the Pakistan and Balochistan authorities. And I would -- I can certainly say, Barrick's prejudice is to find workable compromise solutions that deliver constructive outcomes to these often acrimonious situations. That covers your question. Kip Keen: No, that's very helpful. So I mean you are still able to negotiate even though this settlement's out there? Mark Bristow: No, we're absolutely because there's very clearly -- the settlement is not there. The award has been approved. And now it's how does Pakistan deliver on that, and again, just building on my own personal view about responsible mining and how we deal with our -- those countries. But the same -- we've started that even before the -- we took up the Randgold deal. And it's much more constructive to do that where people benefit out of paying off a sort of judgment like this. But again, there's water to flow under the bridge and we've got a bit like the Porgera -- I mean Pogera was a pretty challenging engagement, but the outcome, I hope, will be worth it for all stakeholders. Kip Keen: Great. I'm just trying to figure out what the option value might be there because it could potentially be meaningful. Mark Bristow: I mean that option value is a good way to look at it. It's -- there's a value. And what we prepare to do is take a long-dated position as far as getting full access to that value. Operator: Our next question comes from John Tumazos of John Tumazos Very Independent Research. John Tumazos: Congratulations on all the great work, Mark. How is the outlook for just getting around and drilling all the meters you want to drill and exploring and replacing reserves this year, given the pandemic? Mark Bristow: Well, as you know, we haven't stopped. I fundamentally believe in managing by walking about. And we've continued as normal. We've just finished -- as part of this quarter 1 results, we had full management reviews with all our operations and on-site team effectiveness and strategic review workshops. So it hasn't -- we've had to be a little flexible in the way we do things. On the drilling side, the big challenge is to get drill companies to work for us. In Africa, we are Boart Longyear's biggest clients and have been through all -- every part of the cycle because we believe in investing in our future. We've worked very hard to get drill rigs into -- onto the Andes. It's been a big challenge during this time. And certainly, from the Argentinian side, we now have drill rigs up there. We've -- as you would have read, we've just completed the drilling, some confirmation redrilling on the Chilean side in Pascua. But again, we could do with a few more rigs. At this stage, we've been working on incentives and how we partner with the drilling companies to be able to achieve our objectives. A fantastic example of the tenacity that's required to get rigs into some countries, particularly over a crisis like this has been Saudi Arabia. But again, you saw today the results of that effort to bring rigs into the country and get the drilling started. So those have been the biggest challenges. Again, in Nevada, we've had to work much harder to build a more business relationship with the drilling companies. I don't think we're quite there yet, but we are prepared to invest in drilling companies to be able to get them to a level where they are able to deliver on what we want them to do. So -- and we see that as a very critical part of our business. So I think in summary, the challenges have been the Andes, for many reasons, because Chile is also battled with the COVID pandemic, and Argentina as well. But again, I'm pleased to say that the teams have made progress, and we do have drilling ongoing. We just mobilized. Last year in Donlin, we didn't have a single COVID case, touch wood. Hopefully, it continues this summer. And so we've just mobilized the rigs into Donlin. We are demobilizing the rigs that are down in the Andes right now because we're moving into winter. John Tumazos: Mark, in other cycles, 10 years ago, it was hard to get the tires for the big trucks. Maybe once or twice a generation or so ago, cyanide was short. What else besides drill rigs is hard for you to get enough of besides Gregg drill intercepts? Mark Bristow: So again, John, our focus, I mean what we bring is mining, I often say, is all about logistics, supply chains. We've got -- I would argue we've probably got the best supply chain organization in the mining industry. And I mean when you see how they manage this -- the impact of this crisis and built flexibility, as soon as we saw it coming, we built flexibility into our supply chain. We were able to switch from China to Europe, back to China seamlessly on supplies, things like cyanide in particular. And again, we are all about long-term relationships. So we've done a lot of work. We've built some very strong partnerships on a global basis with tire suppliers. And again, because we're loyal through the cycle and the fact that we run long-term contracts, we find that we have less -- we've rarely, very seldom been held to ransom by our long-term partners, on every aspect of it. And we run our own -- we have visibility of every single consignment. We manage every aspect of the supply chain, and we monitor it because effectively, we just move stuff as miners. We blast the stuff underground or in the pit, we move it to the processing plant, we move a whole lot of stuff to the processing part to process that ore, and then we ship out bars of gold. So it's just one big movement. So I can clearly confirm that on the tire side, we're in good shape. We're certainly expecting some squeeze. But again, we've spent a lot of time building those relationships across the Barrick group. And we've got a lot of buying power, as you can imagine. John Tumazos: So Mark, you made overtures a year or 2 ago toward Freeport when copper was bottoming. It was a good show. They didn't want to dance, but you gave it a good try at the right time. Almost tongue in cheek, maybe you should take a look at Ford Motor. They're having a big trouble with logistics. Their output is down 50% this quarter. Mark Bristow: So I'm glad you recognize that my copper vision was -- had merit. Yes, I mean maybe we should have done it a little differently, but certainly, what it proves is that we are absolutely focused on creating value. And we recognize when there's an opportunity. I think we also learn from times when we fail on our endeavors. But at the same time, we are not reckless in how we engage on pursuing opportunities that we recognize. So that was one opportunity. We're hunting some more now. And I think what I hopefully shared with you today is that we're also investing in our own future, which is, in my career, that's always been the biggest value creator. John Tumazos: Mark, sometimes the other guy knows every one of those assets are good and his commodity is low. So once in a while, they're going to say, no, but keep trying. Mark Bristow: Exactly. Don't you worry. Don't you worry. Operator: There are no more questions from the conference call. Mark Bristow: Well, thank you, everyone. That was quite a conversation, and really appreciate your input and for you to stay in with us in this conversation. Again, look forward to the next time we talk. And hopefully, everyone will make an effort to join the Nevada Gold Mines team and its virtual Investor Day coming up. And I'm sure you'll find it very interesting and see a little bit more of the color and detail of what that team has achieved with a set of really high-class assets. So again, thank you for your time. And again, if there's anything that you've forgotten to ask or you think of after we sign off, please feel free to reach out to the team. So again, thank you. Operator: This concludes today's conference call. Should you have any additional questions, please contact the Barrick Investor Relations department. You may now disconnect your lines. Thank you for participating, and have a pleasant day.
Barrick Gold Corporation (NYSE: GOLD) Performance and Growth Prospects
- Resilience in Market Fluctuations: GOLD has demonstrated resilience with a 30-day gain of approximately 1.65%, showcasing its ability to withstand market fluctuations.
- Strategic Entry Point: A 4.12% decline over the last 10 days may offer a strategic entry point for investors looking at its long-term growth potential.
- Anticipated Stock Price Increase: Analysts predict a nearly 19.97% increase in GOLD's stock price, supported by the company's strategic initiatives and favorable market conditions.
Barrick Gold Corporation (NYSE: GOLD) is a leading global mining company, primarily engaged in the production and sale of gold and copper. With operations spanning across North America, South America, Africa, and the Middle East, Barrick is one of the largest gold producers in the world. The company competes with other major players in the mining industry, such as Newmont Corporation and AngloGold Ashanti.
In recent performance, GOLD has shown resilience with a 30-day gain of approximately 1.65%. This modest increase highlights the stock's ability to withstand market fluctuations. However, the stock has faced a 4.12% decline over the last 10 days, which may present a strategic entry point for investors aiming to benefit from its long-term growth potential.
GOLD's growth potential is underscored by an anticipated stock price increase of nearly 19.97%. This suggests a significant upside for investors, supported by the company's strategic initiatives and favorable market conditions. Analysts have set a target price of $22.50, reflecting confidence in the stock's ability to rebound and achieve higher valuations.
The company's fundamental strength is evident in its Piotroski Score of 8, indicating strong financial health. This score reflects Barrick's solid profitability, liquidity, and operational efficiency, making it an attractive investment option. The company's focus on cost management and sustainable mining practices further enhances its growth prospects.
Barrick Gold Corporation is well-positioned to benefit from the ongoing demand for gold, driven by economic uncertainties and inflationary pressures. The company's strategic focus on operational efficiency and sustainable practices supports its potential for growth. Investors should consider these factors when evaluating GOLD as a potential investment opportunity.
Barrick Gold Corporation (NYSE: GOLD) Performance and Growth Prospects
- Resilience in Market Fluctuations: GOLD has demonstrated resilience with a 30-day gain of approximately 1.65%, showcasing its ability to withstand market fluctuations.
- Strategic Entry Point: A 4.12% decline over the last 10 days may offer a strategic entry point for investors looking at its long-term growth potential.
- Anticipated Stock Price Increase: Analysts predict a nearly 19.97% increase in GOLD's stock price, supported by the company's strategic initiatives and favorable market conditions.
Barrick Gold Corporation (NYSE: GOLD) is a leading global mining company, primarily engaged in the production and sale of gold and copper. With operations spanning across North America, South America, Africa, and the Middle East, Barrick is one of the largest gold producers in the world. The company competes with other major players in the mining industry, such as Newmont Corporation and AngloGold Ashanti.
In recent performance, GOLD has shown resilience with a 30-day gain of approximately 1.65%. This modest increase highlights the stock's ability to withstand market fluctuations. However, the stock has faced a 4.12% decline over the last 10 days, which may present a strategic entry point for investors aiming to benefit from its long-term growth potential.
GOLD's growth potential is underscored by an anticipated stock price increase of nearly 19.97%. This suggests a significant upside for investors, supported by the company's strategic initiatives and favorable market conditions. Analysts have set a target price of $22.50, reflecting confidence in the stock's ability to rebound and achieve higher valuations.
The company's fundamental strength is evident in its Piotroski Score of 8, indicating strong financial health. This score reflects Barrick's solid profitability, liquidity, and operational efficiency, making it an attractive investment option. The company's focus on cost management and sustainable mining practices further enhances its growth prospects.
Barrick Gold Corporation is well-positioned to benefit from the ongoing demand for gold, driven by economic uncertainties and inflationary pressures. The company's strategic focus on operational efficiency and sustainable practices supports its potential for growth. Investors should consider these factors when evaluating GOLD as a potential investment opportunity.
Barrick Gold Corporation (NYSE:GOLD) Earnings Preview: A Look into the Future
- Analysts predict an EPS of $0.46 with projected revenue of $3.98 billion for the fourth quarter of 2024.
- The company's earnings are expected to benefit from higher gold prices and strong production levels.
- Barrick Gold's stock offers potential growth, trading at a forward P/E ratio of 10.81, indicating an attractive option for value investors.
Barrick Gold Corporation, trading under the symbol GOLD on the NYSE, is a leading player in the gold mining industry. The company is set to release its fourth-quarter 2024 earnings on February 12, 2025. Analysts expect earnings per share (EPS) to be $0.46, with projected revenue of around $3.98 billion. Barrick Gold's performance is closely watched due to its significant role in the mining sector.
The company's upcoming earnings report is anticipated to benefit from higher gold prices and strong production levels. Despite this, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for Barrick's fourth-quarter earnings has been revised downward by 8.9% over the past month, now standing at $0.41 per share. This still represents a substantial year-over-year increase of 51.9%, highlighting the company's growth potential.
Historically, Barrick Gold has exceeded the Zacks Consensus Estimate in three of the last four quarters, with an average earnings surprise of approximately 16.1%. This track record, combined with a positive Earnings ESP and a favorable Zacks Rank, suggests a potential earnings beat for Barrick Gold this quarter. Such performance could positively impact the company's stock price and investor sentiment.
Barrick Gold's stock is currently trading at a forward price-to-earnings ratio of 10.81, which is about 23.7% lower than the average for the Zacks Mining – Gold industry. This positions Barrick Gold as an attractive option for value investors. However, the stock is trading approximately 19.5% below its 52-week high of $21.35, achieved on October 21, 2024, indicating room for potential growth.
Technical analysis shows that GOLD has been trading below its 200-day simple moving average since November 25, 2024, but it surpassed its 50-day simple moving average on January 30, 2025, suggesting a bullish trend. Despite its promising valuation and growth potential, investors should be cautious due to the company's high costs. Barrick Gold's solid financial health, reliable dividend yield, and low debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20 add to its appeal, but these factors must be weighed against cost concerns.
Barrick Gold Corporation (NYSE:GOLD) Earnings Preview: A Look into the Future
- Analysts predict an EPS of $0.46 with projected revenue of $3.98 billion for the fourth quarter of 2024.
- The company's earnings are expected to benefit from higher gold prices and strong production levels.
- Barrick Gold's stock offers potential growth, trading at a forward P/E ratio of 10.81, indicating an attractive option for value investors.
Barrick Gold Corporation, trading under the symbol GOLD on the NYSE, is a leading player in the gold mining industry. The company is set to release its fourth-quarter 2024 earnings on February 12, 2025. Analysts expect earnings per share (EPS) to be $0.46, with projected revenue of around $3.98 billion. Barrick Gold's performance is closely watched due to its significant role in the mining sector.
The company's upcoming earnings report is anticipated to benefit from higher gold prices and strong production levels. Despite this, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for Barrick's fourth-quarter earnings has been revised downward by 8.9% over the past month, now standing at $0.41 per share. This still represents a substantial year-over-year increase of 51.9%, highlighting the company's growth potential.
Historically, Barrick Gold has exceeded the Zacks Consensus Estimate in three of the last four quarters, with an average earnings surprise of approximately 16.1%. This track record, combined with a positive Earnings ESP and a favorable Zacks Rank, suggests a potential earnings beat for Barrick Gold this quarter. Such performance could positively impact the company's stock price and investor sentiment.
Barrick Gold's stock is currently trading at a forward price-to-earnings ratio of 10.81, which is about 23.7% lower than the average for the Zacks Mining – Gold industry. This positions Barrick Gold as an attractive option for value investors. However, the stock is trading approximately 19.5% below its 52-week high of $21.35, achieved on October 21, 2024, indicating room for potential growth.
Technical analysis shows that GOLD has been trading below its 200-day simple moving average since November 25, 2024, but it surpassed its 50-day simple moving average on January 30, 2025, suggesting a bullish trend. Despite its promising valuation and growth potential, investors should be cautious due to the company's high costs. Barrick Gold's solid financial health, reliable dividend yield, and low debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20 add to its appeal, but these factors must be weighed against cost concerns.
Barrick Gold Corporation Q1 2024 Earnings Surge Amid Market Challenges
Barrick Gold Corporation's Financial Performance and Market Outlook
Barrick Gold Corporation (GOLD:NYSE) has navigated through a year marked by both achievements and challenges, as evidenced by its first-quarter earnings report for 2024. The company's financial performance showcased a significant improvement in net earnings, which soared to $295 million, or 17 cents per share, up from $120 million, or 7 cents per share, in the same quarter of the previous year. This increase in earnings is a testament to the company's operational efficiency and its ability to exceed analysts' expectations, with adjusted earnings per share hitting 19 cents against the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 16 cents. Such financial metrics are crucial for investors as they reflect the company's profitability and its potential to generate value.
Despite the positive earnings report, Barrick Gold faced some headwinds, particularly in its sales and production figures. The company's total sales for the quarter amounted to $2.747 billion, marking a modest 4% increase year over year but falling short of the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $2.932 billion. This discrepancy can be attributed to a slight decrease in gold production, which dropped by about 1.3% year over year to 940,000 ounces. However, it's important to note that the average realized price of gold rose by approximately 9% year over year to $2,075 per ounce, indicating a favorable market price for gold despite the production shortfall. This dynamic underscores the impact of global market conditions on commodity prices and the company's ability to navigate these fluctuations.
Financial health is a critical aspect of any company's performance, and Barrick Gold ended the quarter with $3.942 billion in cash and cash equivalents, despite a 10% decrease from the previous year. The company's total debt saw a slight decrease of 1% to $4.725 billion, reflecting its efforts to maintain a solid financial standing. The robust operating cash flow of $760 million, coupled with a reported free cash flow of $32 million, demonstrates Barrick's operational efficiency and its ability to generate cash through its operations. These financial indicators are essential for investors as they provide insights into the company's liquidity, debt management, and overall financial health.
Looking ahead, Barrick Gold has set ambitious production targets for 2024, with gold production expected to be between 3.9 to 4.3 million ounces and copper production projected between 180,000 to 210,000 tons. These projections, along with the anticipated all-in-sustaining costs (AISC), offer a glimpse into the company's operational plans and cost management strategies. However, it's worth noting that despite these projections and the company's financial achievements, Barrick's shares have experienced a 17.3% decline over the past year, underperforming compared to a 6.8% fall in the industry. This decline in share price, currently trading at $16.46 with a slight decrease of 0.54%, reflects the market's reaction to various factors, including the company's performance and broader economic conditions.
The stock's current trading price, coupled with its fluctuation between a low of $16.325 and a high of $16.63 throughout the trading day, and its performance over the year ranging from a low of $13.76 to a high of $20.26, highlights the volatility and the challenges faced by Barrick Gold in the market. Despite these challenges, the company's market capitalization of approximately $28.9 billion and a trading volume of 16.8 million shares on the NYSE underscore its significance in the industry and the investor interest it garners. As Barrick Gold navigates through the complexities of the gold mining sector and the fluctuating market conditions, its financial performance and strategic outlook remain key areas of focus for investors and market analysts alike.
Barrick Gold Corporation Earnings Preview: What Investors Need to Know
Barrick Gold Corporation Earnings Preview
On Wednesday, May 1, 2024, before the market opens, Barrick Gold Corporation (GOLD:NYSE) is set to release its quarterly earnings, with Wall Street analysts predicting an earnings per share (EPS) of $0.16 and revenue estimates hovering around $2.75 billion. This upcoming financial disclosure is particularly significant as it comes at a time when GOLD has been spotlighted by Zacks Investment Research as a top value stock for long-term investment. The recommendation from Zacks is based on their Style Scores system, which is part of the Zacks Premium research service, designed to help investors identify strong stocks across various investment strategies such as value, growth, and momentum investing. This endorsement from Zacks underscores the potential Barrick Gold holds for investors looking for valuable additions to their portfolios, making the forthcoming earnings report a pivotal moment for both current and prospective investors.
Barrick Gold's status as a trending stock on Zacks.com further amplifies the anticipation surrounding its quarterly earnings report. The company's recent surge in attention from users on the platform highlights its relevance in the market and underscores the importance of staying informed about factors that could influence its future performance. With the earnings report on the horizon, investors and analysts are preparing with a mix of anticipation and caution. According to Zacks Investment Research, GOLD does not possess the right combination of two key ingredients for a likely earnings beat, which adds a layer of suspense to the upcoming announcement. Despite this cautious outlook, there is still an expectation of growth in earnings, making this report crucial for those considering investing in Barrick Gold.
Financially, Barrick Gold presents a mixed bag of indicators. With a Price to Earnings (PE) ratio TTM (Trailing Twelve Months) of approximately 23.91, it suggests that investors are willing to pay $23.91 for every dollar of earnings, which is a critical metric for assessing the company's valuation. The Price to Sales Ratio TTM stands at about 2.67, indicating the value the market places on each dollar of the company's sales, while the EV (Enterprise Value) to Sales TTM ratio is slightly higher at approximately 2.72, suggesting the company's valuation in relation to its sales after adjusting for debt. These metrics are essential for investors to understand the company's current market valuation and financial health.
Moreover, the company's financial health is further illuminated by its Earnings Yield TTM of about 4.18%, which provides an indication of the earnings generated per dollar invested. The Debt to Equity TTM ratio is relatively low at 0.20, showing that the company has a conservative approach to leveraging, with much more equity than debt in its capital structure. This is a positive sign for investors looking for companies with a lower risk of financial distress. Additionally, the Current Ratio TTM, an indicator of the company's ability to pay short-term obligations, is significantly healthy at approximately 3.16, suggesting strong liquidity and financial stability.
As Barrick Gold (GOLD) approaches its earnings report, the combination of Zacks Investment Research's endorsement, the company's trending status, and its financial indicators provide a comprehensive picture for investors. While the cautious outlook from Zacks adds an element of uncertainty, the overall anticipation for growth in earnings and the company's strong financial health make this an important moment for those invested in or considering an investment in GOLD.
