CDE Stock: Coeur Mining's Silver-Gold Shift After New Gold

Coeur Mining is using the cash and mines from its New Gold acquisition to fund what it calls a record exploration program in 2026. A share buyback, running alongside the spending, adds another layer to management's message that the stock is undervalued.

The deal closed late last year. It gave Coeur three gold mines in Nevada and Alaska, roughly doubling its gold production and pushing total output toward 500,000 ounces of gold-equivalent per year. The acquisition also brought debt – about $200 million in new notes – but the company has been paying that down with free cash flow from higher gold prices.

Silver remains the bigger piece of Coeur's story. The Rochester mine in Nevada still ranks among the largest primary silver operations in the U.S., and Palmarejo in Mexico keeps churning out silver with gold as a byproduct. What changes after New Gold is the risk profile. The company is no longer a pure play on silver prices; gold now covers a bigger share of revenue, which could smooth earnings when silver lags.

The exploration budget is where the post-deal thesis gets interesting. Coeur has said it will spend more on brownfield drilling at Rochester and Palmarejo, aiming to extend mine lives and boost grades. If those programs deliver, the company could sustain higher production without another major acquisition. The buyback, meanwhile, signals that management sees the share price – which has trailed some peers this year – as too cheap.

AlphaScala's proprietary score for Coeur sits at 64 out of 100, a moderate rating that reflects solid fundamentals but no breakout momentum. The stock is up about 10% in 2025, roughly in line with the gold miners' index but behind silver plays that have jumped on the metal's rally above $30 an ounce.

For investors tracking the mining sector, Coeur's next catalyst is the exploration update. If drilling results show higher grades or longer mine lives, the stock could re-rate toward the higher end of its peer group. If the exploration comes up short, the buyback still provides a floor.

The New Gold deal also reshapes how Coeur competes in the M&A landscape. With seven mines across the Americas, it has the scale to bid on smaller deposits that larger producers ignore. The company has already walked away from one joint venture – the Tim project in Canada – freeing up cash for its own drilling.

Read more about Coeur's strategy in our earlier analysis: Coeur Mining's Net Cash and Seven-Mine Bet After New Gold Deal. For a look at how the silver conference changed the stock's narrative, see Coeur Mining Silver Conference: What Changed for CDE.

The buyback, as of the last quarter, had retired roughly 3% of shares outstanding. That alone boosts earnings per share even if production stays flat. The real upside, though, depends on whether the exploration dollars turn into ounces. Coeur has set a high bar with its "record" language. Now it has to deliver.