AEM vs. NEM: Which Gold Mining Giant Should You Invest in Now?

Anindya Barman May 25, 2026

NEM AEM

Better trading starts here.

What would you like to follow?

Anindya Barman

Analyst Blog

Cancel

Key Takeaways

Agnico Eagle is advancing key projects while boosting cash flow, buybacks and dividends.
NEM expanded liquidity and free cash flow as it ramps up Ahafo North production.
Both miners are exposed to higher production costs in 2026, weighing on margins.

Agnico Eagle Mines Limited (AEM - Free Report) and Newmont Corporation (NEM - Free Report) are two prominent players in the gold mining space with global operations and diversified portfolios. Although gold prices have retreated sharply from their January 2026 peak, they continue to remain at supportive levels. Against this backdrop, comparing the two industry giants is particularly relevant for investors seeking exposure to the precious metals sector.

Heightened geopolitical tensions, a weaker U.S. dollar, tariff-related concerns and concerns surrounding the Federal Reserve’s independence had driven bullion to a record high of nearly $5,600 per ounce in late January. Since then gold has pulled back sharply due to rising inflation concerns triggered by a surge in crude oil prices amid persistent Middle East tensions and the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, with prices falling to $4,500 per ounce last week. Bullion has recovered toward $4,600 per ounce lately on prospects of a U.S.-Iran deal.

Let’s dive deep and closely compare the fundamentals of these two mining giants to determine which one is a better investment now.

The Case for Agnico Eagle

Agnico Eagle is focused on executing projects that are expected to provide additional growth in production and cash flows. It is advancing its key value drivers and pipeline projects, including the Odyssey project in the Canadian Malartic Complex, Detour Lake, Hope Bay, Upper Beaver and San Nicolas.

The merger with Kirkland Lake Gold established Agnico Eagle as the industry's highest-quality senior gold producer. The integrated entity now has an extensive pipeline of development and exploration projects to drive sustainable growth. It also has the financial flexibility to fund a strong pipeline of growth projects.

AEM has a robust liquidity position and generates substantial cash flows, which enable it to maintain a strong exploration budget, finance a strong pipeline of growth projects, pay down debt and drive shareholder value. Its operating cash flow for full-year 2025 was a record $6.8 billion, driven by operational efficiencies. Operating cash flow was roughly $1.3 billion in the first quarter, up around 29% from the year-ago quarter.

AEM’s first-quarter free cash flow climbed 23% year over year to roughly $732 million. The upside was backed by the strength in gold prices and robust operational results. The company remains focused on paying down debt using excess cash, with total long-term debt reducing by roughly $950 million in 2025. The company had a long-term debt of $197 million at the end of the first quarter. It ended the quarter with a significant net cash position of roughly $2.9 billion, driven by an increase in cash.

AEM also returned around $1.4 billion to its shareholders in 2025 and $375 million in the first quarter of 2026 through dividends and share buybacks. It raised its quarterly dividend by 12.5% to 45 cents per share. AEM offers a dividend yield of 1% at the current stock price. It has a five-year annualized dividend growth rate of 2.7%. AEM has a payout ratio of 18%.

Agnico Eagle remains exposed to higher production costs. Its all-in-sustaining costs (AISC) — a critical cost metric for miners — were $1,483 per ounce in the first quarter, marking a roughly 26% year-over-year rise. AISC increased year over year due to higher total cash costs and an uptick in sustaining capital expenditures. Total cash costs per ounce for gold were $1,093, 22% higher than $895 a year ago. Total cash costs rose due to increased royalty costs and lower production.

AEM forecasts total cash costs per ounce in the range of $1,020 to $1,120 and AISC per ounce between $1,400 and $1,550 for 2026, suggesting a year-over-year increase at the midpoint of the respective ranges. Cash costs are expected to increase in 2026, partly due to higher royalty costs, cost inflation (including higher labor and electricity costs) and lower grades across certain mines. Higher production costs warrant caution, as they will likely weigh on AEM’s profitability.

The Case for Newmont

Newmont continues to invest in growth projects in a calculated manner. The company is pursuing several projects, including the Cadia Panel Caves and Tanami Expansion 2 in Australia. These projects should expand Newmont’s production capacity and extend mine life, driving revenues and profits.

In October 2025, NEM achieved a significant milestone at Ahafo North. It achieved commercial production at the project, which followed the first gold pour in September 2025. Ahafo North is expected to produce between 275,000 and 325,000 ounces of gold annually over an estimated mine life of 13 years. Output is expected to be 315,000 ounces this year, with a ramp-up to full capacity.

Newmont has a strong liquidity position and generates substantial cash flows, which allow it to fund its growth projects, meet short-term debt obligations and drive shareholder value. At the end of the first quarter of 2026, Newmont had robust liquidity of roughly $12.8 billion, including cash and cash equivalents of around $8.8 billion. Its free cash flow surged 161% year over year to a record $3.1 billion in the first quarter, led by an increase in net cash from operating activities. Net cash from operating activities amounted to $3.8 billion in the first quarter, up from $2 billion in the year-ago quarter.

NEM has distributed $3.4 billion to its shareholders through dividends and share repurchases in 2025. It has returned $2.7 billion to its shareholders since Feb. 19, 2026. Newmont has executed repurchases of $6 billion under the earlier authorized share purchase programs, including $2.4 billion since the fourth-quarter 2025 earnings call. Its board has approved an additional $6 billion repurchase program. NEM offers a dividend yield of 1% at the current stock price. Its payout ratio is 12%.

Newmont also remains committed to deleveraging, reducing debt by roughly $3.4 billion in 2025. It also reduced debt by an additional $42 million in the first quarter, resulting in a strong net cash position of $3.2 billion.

NEM saw lower gold production for the first quarter of 2026, partly linked to its strategic divestment of non-core assets. NEM reported a roughly 16% year-over-year and 10% sequential decline in attributable gold production to 1.3 million ounces. Newmont expects second-quarter 2026 production to be below the first-quarter level.

The company anticipates gold production at about 5.26 million ounces for 2026, indicating a year-over-year decline from 5.89 million ounces in 2025. NEM expects lower production from Penasquito and Cadia in 2026 due to the site transitions. It also sees lower-than-expected production from Nevada Gold Mines and Pueblo Viejo. These will be partly offset by contributions from the newly commissioned Ahafo North mine.

Lower production is also expected to lead to higher unit costs in 2026. NEM expects AISC to be $1,680 per ounce on a by-product basis, a notable increase from $1,358 per ounce in 2025. The expected increase is due to lower sales volumes as a result of planned mine sequencing, higher royalties and production taxes, deferral of sustaining capital from 2025 into 2026 and inventory changes.

AEM & NEM: Price Performance, Valuation & Other Comparisons

AEM stock has popped 49.6% over the past year, while NEM stock has racked up a gain of 100.6% compared with the Zacks Mining – Gold industry’s increase of 63.7%.