Agnico Eagle Earnings: Another Strong Result on Higher Gold Prices and Sales Volumes
No-moat Agnico Eagle’s first-quarter 2024 result was another good one and in line with our expectations. The purchase of the remaining 50% of the Canadian Malartic mine from Yamana Gold in March 2023 drove a 12% increase in gold sales volumes to about 880,000 ounces. We expect a similar run rate over the rest of the year and continue to forecast 2024 sales of roughly 3.45 million ounces, the midpoint of unchanged guidance. Higher gold prices were another tailwind, helping more than offset an 8% rise in unit cash costs due to inflation, with adjusted EBITDA rising 26% to about USD 930 million. We forecast 2024 EBITDA of roughly USD 3.9 billion, up 20% on 2023 due to higher gold sales volumes and prices more than offsetting increased unit cash costs. Free cash flow of roughly USD 400 million—about USD 0.79 per share—was also strong, up by about half on the same period last year.