Video News/Digging Deep

Nicole Adshead-Bell, Director of Cupel Advisory, says rising commodity prices can obscure important differences in execution across the mining sector. Speaking with Kitco Mining’s Digging Deep at PDAC 2026 in Toronto, Adshead-Bell said, “we always mistake alpha for beta,” arguing that broad market strength can lift weaker operators alongside stronger ones and mask underlying risks during certain phases of the cycle. Adshead-Bell also discussed a growing capital allocation debate among gold producers, noting that at least 10 companies now hold $1 billion or more in cash even after increasing shareholder returns. She questioned whether producers should consider holding gold instead of dollars on their balance sheets and emphasized that share buybacks require conviction that stocks are undervalued based on appropriate gold price assumptions. The conversation also addressed investor uncertainty surrounding Barrick’s strategy ahead of a potential North American IPO, tensions within Nevada Gold Mines, and evolving royalty structures that reflect cost of capital advantages in the sector.