Stockchase Opinions

James WestKirkland Lake GoldKL.TOBUYMay 16, 2012

Has halved in value since last September while the price of gold has not halved in value. Suffering the dual influence of weak gold prices and general weak market conditions. At this price is a steal. Increasing their production profile incrementally over time. Would hold this until it reached $20 which he would expect would happen in 12-24 months.
$10.27

Stock price when the opinion was issued

$49.71

As of Feb 09, 2022. Market Open.

precious metals
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Curated by Michael O'Reilly since 2020.
1550+ opinions with 4.81 rating (one of the best performing expert).

PAST TOP PICK
(A Top Pick Feb 25/21, Up 15.3%)Stockchase Research Editor: Michael O’Reilly With the recent completed acquisition by AEM now official, we now consider this position closed. When combined with the previous recommendation to cover half the position, this results in a net investment gain of 22%.
TOP PICK
Merging with AEM. A clean story. His play to be in the gold space but with a very specific choice. Detour Mine is a big asset they can grow around. EMs care more about gold than the developed world. When the world starts growing again, money will come back to the sector and this will be good for gold stocks. Good hedge to geopolitical risk. Yield is 1.93%. (Analysts’ price target is $63.24)
PAST TOP PICK
(A Top Pick Apr 26/21, Up 4%) Belief in gold as protection against inflation not a good strategy. Has since sold company and does not own it anymore. Not a good investment.
HOLD
Taken over at 2x book value, same as AEM. Virtually a merger of equals made in heaven. AEM has lots of deposits to develop, and KL has lots of money. Gold prices will move higher, so this should move higher. Likes KL and the merger.
BUY
He bought it late. He thinks it is a good play right now. There might even be a higher bid coming in. It sticks out as a good play right here.
SELL
Asset light, price makers is what he's interested in right now. Best-run gold company on the planet. Better options out there. Excellent company. He sold out about a year ago around these same levels.
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PAST TOP PICK
(A Top Pick Feb 24/21, Up 29.1%)Stockchase Research Editor: Michael O'Reilly Our PAST TOP PICK with KL is progressing well and has achieved its $56 objective. To remain disciplined, we recommend covering half the position and trailing up the stop (from $32) to $44 -- just above the initial recommended entry level.
PAST TOP PICK

(A Top Pick Sep 11/20, Down 25%) Has extremely high amounts of gold in Australia. They bought Detour Gold in Canada which added lots of inventory. Price target of $80. Gold has come off its highs.

DON'T BUY
Hesitant to hold any commodities. The price of gold has moved up but there is a lot of volatility. It is difficult to set prices. It is at the market's whim. It could be a boom time but we never know when the bust will occur. Would prefer Franco-Nevada for the royalty model.
BUY

A core intermediate gold producer. They own the largest Canadian gold mine and have a reputation for running high-grade mines like Fosterville in Australia. Their Detour acquisition was meant to stabilize their production base. He believes in management. It's about generating strong free cash flow to fund their new shaft, the Macassa Mine, which is on schedule and offsetting production loss from Fosterville through 2023. KL produces 1.4 million ounces per year. It has a solid balance sheet, but is getting over near-term issues from owning the largest Canadian mine. His go-to company in gold.

PAST TOP PICK

(A Top Pick Jul 06/20, Up 4%) It's an asset-heavy business which won't fare as well in inflationary times that we are entering. He prefers asset-lite companies and in this space prefers royalty plays like Franco-Nevada. But KL is the best-run gold company out there, with fine managers. His position is smaller now. KL does hold a 7-8% free cash flow yield vs. 2-3% among its peers.

STRONG BUY
A core holding. Gold should be much higher a year from now, so this will be higher. An amazing story. Beautiful entry point. When the storm hits, this will be an amazing lifeboat and move much higher. Happy to hold and wait. Started a dividend. When gold goes up, there will be increasing revenue, value of reserves, and increasing dividend. Price target of $70.
COMMENT
They have a great history of allocating capital efficiency. The market is concerned that gold prices have peaked. It is discounting lower gold prices in the future. If we see rates move lower again, we could see the gold price move back and it would get this stock moving.
WEAK BUY

Inflation expectations are building. Though the relation between inflation and gold is questionable, people favour hard assets with retention of value. Some exposure to gold is good, usually around 2-3%. KL's purchase of Detour Gold was brilliant. Well managed, but he prefers companies with many different projects.

BUY

KL-T vs. ABX-T. He would prefer KL-T as it has been hit so hard. You are getting the cash and the good balance sheet.