2019 Noosa Conference Wrap
About the author:
- Author name:
- By Adrian Prendergast
- Job title:
- Senior Analyst
- Date posted:
- 25 July 2019, 12:55 PM
- Sectors Covered:
- Mining, Energy
- We look back on what was another stellar Noosa Mining & Exploration Conference, which was held on July 17-19.
- This was the 9th year of the conference, with 70 companies presenting and attendance hitting a new record – indicative of improving sentiment.
- Conference attendee feedback was easily split into two categories: 1) Gold stocks, and 2) Non-gold stocks.
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While gold remains popular, we did see a rise in interest for growth-orientated commodities (energy resources, base metals and bulks) vs last year.
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Where sentiment currently sits
Walking around the conference, it was not uncommon to bump into a retail and institutional investor who holds 2-4 gold stocks for every non-gold resource stock held at present. This confirmed our view on both:
- The ongoing appeal of current gold fundamentals (with the Australian dollar gold price recently pushing to fresh record levels), and
- How much investors will prioritise safe-haven investments in a low interest rate and high macroeconomic risk environment.
We expect this sets gold up for further gains.
Investors getting ready to rotate back into growth
It is hard to dispute the positive fundamentals driving gold interest, but what came as a surprise in Noosa was how much homework investors are doing now in preparation for the inevitable sentiment recovery in growth-orientated commodities (such as energy resources, base metals, industrial minerals and bulk resources).
A large potential catalyst to trigger this recovery from a top-down perspective could be a solution being reached in the current US-China trade war along and/or a mitigation of risks around Brexit.
Important value creation taking place
Access to funding is critical for juniors, which made it refreshing to see so many explorers and emerging producers already adding critical commercial value to their projects even at a time where the tide in equity markets is out on small-cap resources. While this value creation is not yet being consistently reflected in share price performances, it sets these miners up as the most likely to re-rate once the market’s attitude towards growth shifts.
Key highlights from the conference
Looking at the above themes that came up at Noosa, our team has put together a list of key highlights from the conference.
Key gold stocks: Red 5 (RED) (gold), Westgold (WGX) (gold), and Gold Road Resources (GOR) (gold).
Other highlights from the conference: Cooper Energy (COE) (oil & gas), Central Petroleum (CTP) (oil & gas), Otto Energy (OEL) (oil & gas), Comet Ridge (COI) (oil & gas), Panoramic Resources (PAN) (nickel), Genex Power (GNX) (renewables), Kalium Lakes (KLL) (potash), Vimy Resources (VMY) (uranium), and Paladin Energy (PDN) (uranium).
There were also a number of prospective explorers that caught our eye, including: Stavely Minerals (SVY) (copper), Sunstone Metals (STM) (copper), PolarX (PXX) (copper), and Strandline Resources (STA) (mineral sands).
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More information
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Disclaimer: Analyst owns shares in the following mentioned company(ies): CTP, OEL, GNX, MMI, STM. The information contained in this report is provided to you by Morgans Financial Limited as general advice only, and is made without consideration of an individual's relevant personal circumstances. Morgans Financial Limited ABN 49 010 669 726, its related bodies corporate, directors and officers, employees, authorised representatives and agents (“Morgans”) do not accept any liability for any loss or damage arising from or in connection with any action taken or not taken on the basis of information contained in this report, or for any errors or omissions contained within. It is recommended that any persons who wish to act upon this report consult with their Morgans investment adviser before doing so.