Rua Gold Inc. (TSXV: RUA, OTC: NZAUF, WKN: H8E)
An Emerging Gold Explorer with Two Highly Prospective Land Packages in New Zealand’s historical gold fields.
The price of gold has risen by 17 per cent since the beginning of the year due to macroeconomic uncertainty, geopolitical conflicts and inflation. While gold is trusted by more and more investors as a safe-haven asset, the place of gold equities in portfolios is set to be reviewed.
In fact, according to a recent industry research report, analysts believe that the weighting of gold assets in portfolios should be significantly increased to 25%. Here are one particular TSX gold stock to consider.
In an environment of mounting uncertainty, gold has become one of the few certainties in portfolios. And the real beauty of Agnico-Eagle Mines Ltd. (TSX:AEM) lies in the low-risk nature of holding this stock.
Since inception, the company has decided to focus on areas that are politically stable and favourable for mining. As a result, Agnico’s operations are centred on Canada, Europe, Australia and Mexico. As a result, the company’s operational and financial performance has been highly stable over the years and has translated into relatively low costs, strong cash flows and strong shareholder returns.
The company’s Q1 2024 results reported an eight per cent increase in gold production to a record 879,000 ounces and an increase in earnings per share (EPS) to $0.76, compared to the analysts’ consensus estimate of $0.65. This compares to $0.57 in the same period last year, an increase of 33 per cent.
Management’s forecast is for EPS of $2.94 in 2024, up 32 per cent from $2.23 in 2023.
An investment of $1,000 in shares of Agnico-Eagle Mines would yield 10 shares. It’s not much, but Agnico not only implies a relatively low risk investment in gold, but also provides a strong and growing dividend. In fact, over the past five years, this gold stock has grown its annual dividend per share by 143% to $2.17. That’s a very healthy, 19.5% compound annual growth rate (CAGR).
