Can Coeur Mining Sustain and Expand Its Free Cash Flow in 2026?

Coeur Mining, Inc. CDE saw a sharp inflection in free cash flow generation in the fourth quarter of 2025, which rose 66% sequentially to a record $313 million. It reflects stronger operating cash flows fueled by higher realized gold and silver prices of $3,184 and $40.01, respectively. 

Higher production volumes and enhanced cost discipline across its portfolio, notably at the Palmarejo mine in Mexico, Rochester in Nevada and Kensington in Alaska, strengthened overall operating performance. Continued operational stabilization and the successful ramp-up at Rochester following its expansion drove higher throughput rates and improved margin realization, contributing meaningfully to cash flow growth. 

This surge in cash generation materially strengthened the balance sheet, enabling meaningful debt reduction, enhancing liquidity and positioning the company with greater financial flexibility. Sustained free cash flow at these levels could support further deleveraging, opportunistic growth investments and enhancing shareholder returns. 

Among Peers, Kinross Gold Corporation KGC delivered attributable free cash flow of $769.4 million in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2025, surging more than 77% year over year. The sharp increase was driven by stronger operating cash flow, supported by a higher realized gold price of $4,144, steady production performance and disciplined cost control that improved cash conversion.  

The robust free cash flow enabled Kinross Gold to further strengthen its balance sheet and enhance financial flexibility. Kinross Gold is well-positioned to fund growth initiatives, optimize capital allocation and potentially increase shareholder returns while maintaining resilience against commodity price volatility. 

IAMGOLD Corporation IAG delivered record mine-site free cash flow of $626.6 million in the fourth quarter of 2025, a substantial 701.3% year-over-year increase aided by a higher realized gold price of $4,191 and stronger operational performance.  

IAMGOLD’s free cash flow lift was propelled by improved contributions from key assets such as Essakane, which contributed about $340.4 million, and Cote, which generated roughly $197 million in the quarter, reflecting solid production levels and disciplined cost management that boosted cash margins. The robust free cash flow allowed IAMGOLD to reduce net debt, enhance liquidity and return capital to shareholders. 

The Zacks Rundown for CDE

Shares of CDE have popped 340.7% in a year compared with its industry’s 85.3% rise.

CDE is currently trading at a forward 12-month price-to-sales of 5.75X, higher than the industry’s average of 4.96X. It carries a Value Score of D. 

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for CDE for 2026 earnings implies year-over-year growth of 149%. 

The consensus estimate for EPS for fiscal 2026 has been trending higher over the past 90 days. 

CDE currently sports a Zacks Rank of #1 (Strong Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).

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