Franco Nevada (FNV) Q3 FY25 earnings call: guidance and Q&A

Given high gold prices and Franco's countercyclical bent, what is the commodity focus and are there plans to expand gold in Australia?

Precious metals remain the #1 focus and most of the pipeline is gold, but Franco keeps room to diversify if better value exists elsewhere. In Australia, a new BD hire (Matt Selby, Perth) is driving growth; Franco holds extensive land-covering royalties there and wants to back good local teams similar to G Mining/Discovery.

“we have a ton of royalties that cover a huge amount of land in Australia, but it's not yet a big part of our revenue.”

asked by Fahad Tariq · answered by Paul Brink

Will the focus shift to organic growth over deals, and how should Palmarejo trend into Q4?

Deals remain a constant focus; organic-growth confidence is about discipline — a strong baseline means no need to overpay. On Palmarejo, expect similar levels to the 9-month average, with a full-year projection of 40,000-50,000 GEOs.

“We know we've got a baseline there. The acquisitions on top of that are incremental.”

asked by Sathish Kasinathan · answered by Paul Brink

Has the surge in gold (from ~$3,400 to ~$4,000 in three months) changed thinking on dividend, buybacks or M&A?

Business as usual — adding quality assets is the top capital priority. The dividend will be increased in 2026 (quantum TBD) under a progressive, never-cut policy; share buybacks are not being considered as adding assets is seen as the best use of a dollar.

“share buybacks is not something that we're considering at this time.”

asked by Case Bongirne · answered by Sandip Rana

Visibility on NPI-driving ore, rationale for the Discovery sale, and how PGM outperformance benefits the Western Limb stream?

NPI visibility is limited (mine-plan/timing driven); Hemlo weaker in Q3 with the pending Barrick sale, Musselwhite paid annually on a conservative estimate. New owners (Quartermain, Simpson teams) seen as positive. Discovery sale (small portion) captured a gain and helped repay revolver debt; Franco remains a long-term holder. On Western Limb, a portion of the stream is platinum (benefiting directly), and gold deliveries pegged to 4E PGM production benefit indirectly as the basket improves, with the split now 82% gold/18% PGM vs 70/30 at announcement.

“this structure mitigates any risk of volatility for mining from one versus the other for us and provides a more stable stream of gold revenues to Franco.”

asked by Cosmos Chiu · answered by Eaun Gray

Are precious-metal deals still $100-500M and asset-sale/build funding, is competition rising, what nonprecious sizes, and how does corporate M&A compare?

Deal environment and sizes are consistent with prior quarters — good asset-sale and project-financing opportunities plus selective third-party royalties, no noticeable change in competition (volatility is the defining factor). Nonprecious deals are opportunistic and expected under ~$500M. Corporate transactions are always assessed but private deals typically offer better returns. The ~$625M equity book's largest positions are Discovery Silver, G Mining and Labrador Iron Ore Royalty (LIF).

“What has defined recent period is volatility, volatility in prices and volatility in terms of a number of other factors at play in the market.”

asked by Tanya Jakusconek · answered by Eaun Gray

What is the attraction of the incremental Gold Quarry royalty, and confirm the Discovery share sale details?

The incremental Gold Quarry royalty carries a minimum tied to reserves (which can rise with gold price), providing a healthy rate of return plus upside from a contemplated pit-wall pushback to the north and east at high gold prices. Franco sold 26 million Discovery shares (not the 27.8M the analyst estimated).

“the hopes and dreams are with high gold prices that, that is something that would go ahead and that we could get a lot more from that royalty.”

asked by John Tumazos · answered by Paul Brink

Which restart catalyst is the likely bottleneck and is a year-end audit/fiscal-terms outcome realistic; and what is Arthur's initial scope/timeline?

Mulino's year-end objective is possible though could slip; the audit is underway, no formal negotiations yet but both sides preparing, and sentiment/ground activity are trending positively. On Arthur, delighted with the AngloGold partnership and the geological upside; permitting environment in the US has improved (e.g. Stibnite), with a hoped-for mine start in the early 2030s.

“you saw 70%, 80% of folks post protest were anti-mining in any form, and that has shifted to a slight majority now that are open”

asked by Daniel Major · answered by Paul Brink

Is there more leverage in primary-gold royalties, and what is the view on Argentina plus GEOs from Taca Taca/San Jorge?

Yes — higher gold prices lower cutoff grades and move material into reserves/mine plans; roughly half of Franco's assets are gold streams on copper mines and half royalties on principal gold assets, so both should see strong organic growth. Argentina's RIGI program (currency convertibility, international arbitration) is a positive; San Jorge could be an early RIGI mover and Taca Taca likely First Quantum's next big copper build. Combined 2029 outlook is ~5,000 GEOs (conservative).

“even if the gold price stayed flat in that scenario, our stock price would be worth a lot more because you get a huge amount of ounces that get moved into reserves.”

asked by Derick Ma · answered by Paul Brink