Two years after taking the helm of Barrick Gold Corp (ABX.TO), Aaron Regent has put his stamp on the world's largest gold miner with a bold diversification that marks a return to his roots. Barrick's youthful chief executive, who has years of experience leading base-metal mining companies, has a steely confidence in the long-term fundamentals behind surging copper prices. He's more bullish than nearly every analyst who makes forecasts. It is a perspective that guided his decision to strike a C$7.3 billion ($7.7 billion) deal to buy Equinox Minerals (EQN.TO) this week and make what his critics say is a ill-advised foray outside gold mining, which has always defined Barrick. Trumping a bid for Equinox by China's Minmetals Resources -- a unit of a state-owned base metals giant -- Regent stunned the market and precipitated a 10 percent drop in Barrick's share price.
Shares of ABX traded higher by 0.34% or $0.17/share to $50.36. In the past year, the shares have traded as low as $39.67 and as high as $55.74. On average, 8794760 shares of ABX exchange hands on a given day and today's volume is recorded at 3904472.
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