Is NEM a Buy? What to Consider in 2026
Last updated July 2026
Short answer
The bull case for Newmont (NEM) rests on Leveraged exposure to gold: Gold is a long-standing store of value and safe-haven asset that investors turn to during inflation, falling real rates, and market or geopolitical stress. Revenue (TTM) is ~$20 billion (varies with gold prices). If you believe that thesis holds, the real questions become position sizing and overlap, not timing. The main risk to that view: Newmont is a commodity producer, so its revenue and profits swing with the gold price and byproduct metal prices it does not control, and those prices can fall sharply. Whether NEM is a buy comes down to whether you believe the thesis. This is informational, not a recommendation, and Walnut is not an investment adviser.
Newmont (NEM) is the world's largest gold producer and a leading name in precious-metals mining. It explores for, mines, and sells gold, with meaningful byproduct production of copper, silver, zinc, and lead from a global portfolio of tier-one operations across North America, South America, Australia, Africa, and Papua New Guinea. Gold is the company's core driver, and its revenue and profits move closely with the gold price, which it does not control and which tends to rise with inflation fears, falling real interest rates, and market or geopolitical stress. Newmont expanded its scale and reserves through the 2023 acquisition of Newcrest Mining and has since worked to streamline the combined portfolio around its highest-quality, longest-life assets while returning cash through dividends and buybacks. As a commodity producer, Newmont's earnings swing with gold and byproduct prices as well as mining costs. Headquartered in Denver, Colorado, it is widely viewed as a large-cap, liquid way to gain equity exposure to gold, often held as a diversifier or an inflation and safe-haven hedge rather than as a steady compounder.
What's the case for buying NEM?
1. Leveraged exposure to gold.
Gold is a long-standing store of value and safe-haven asset that investors turn to during inflation, falling real rates, and market or geopolitical stress. As the largest gold producer, Newmont offers leveraged equity exposure to the gold price: when gold rises, its margins and cash flow can expand faster than the metal itself, which is a core reason investors hold miners instead of, or alongside, physical gold.
2. Scale, tier-one assets, and reserves.
Newmont operates one of the largest and most diversified portfolios of gold mines in the industry, spanning the Americas, Australia, Africa, and Papua New Guinea, and holds a deep reserve and resource base. The 2023 Newcrest acquisition added scale and long-life assets. Byproduct copper, silver, zinc, and lead diversify revenue and can lower the effective cost of producing gold.
3. Portfolio streamlining and capital returns.
Since combining with Newcrest, Newmont has worked to focus the portfolio on its highest-quality, longest-life operations, divesting smaller or non-core assets and paying down debt. It aims to return cash to shareholders through a base dividend and share buybacks. Disciplined cost control and capital allocation are intended to improve returns and free cash flow through the gold-price cycle.
What are the risks to NEM?
Newmont is a commodity producer, so its revenue and profits swing with the gold price and byproduct metal prices it does not control, and those prices can fall sharply. Mining is capital intensive and carries operational, geological, environmental, permitting, and safety risks, and unexpected mine problems can cut production. Its global footprint exposes it to country-specific political, regulatory, tax, currency, and labor risks. All-in sustaining costs have risen with energy, labor, and input inflation, squeezing margins if gold does not keep pace. Large acquisitions like Newcrest carry integration and execution risk. The stock is volatile and tied to gold sentiment, real interest rates, and the US dollar. It is a cyclical position, not a steady income or defensive holding.
How is NEM valued? (as of early 2026)
- Revenue (TTM): ~$20 billion (varies with gold prices)
- Primary product: gold, with byproduct copper, silver, zinc, and lead
- Gold production (2025): ~5.9 million attributable ounces
- Gold AISC (2025): ~$1,358 per ounce by-product basis; guided higher for 2026
- Net income: highly cyclical with gold and byproduct prices
- P/E (TTM): variable; cyclical and gold-price-dependent
- Dividend: base dividend of ~$0.26 per share per quarter as of late 2025 (~1% yield range)
- Headquarters: Denver, Colorado; primary listing NYSE
Newmont's valuation is inherently cyclical because earnings move with the gold price and mining costs the company does not fully control. A normal P/E can look low near the top of the gold cycle and high or not meaningful at the bottom, so the stock often trades on the gold-price outlook, real interest rates, and cost trends rather than trailing earnings. Rising all-in sustaining costs can compress margins even when gold is firm. Figures are approximate and move with commodity prices; verify current numbers before relying on them.
How do you decide if NEM is a buy?
Rather than asking whether NEM is a buy in the abstract, it tends to help to answer four questions:
- Thesis: do you believe the case above, and is it still true today?
- Time horizon: a single stock can be volatile, so a longer horizon absorbs more of the swings.
- Position sizing: a thesis can be right and the sizing still wrong; decide how much of your portfolio one name should be.
- Overlap: check whether you already hold NEM indirectly through an index or sector ETF before adding more.
For the full picture, see the NEM stock guide (what the company does, the ETFs that hold it, similar stocks, and the themes it fits). In Walnut you can ask its AI about NEM against your real portfolio and see your actual exposure before deciding.
The bottom line on NEM
The bottom line: Newmont's story right now is Leveraged exposure to gold, with revenue (ttm) at ~$20 billion (varies with gold prices). If you believe that narrative continues, the call is about sizing NEM sensibly and checking overlap with what you own; if you doubt it (the risk: newmont is a commodity producer, so its revenue and profits swing with the gold price and byproduct metal prices it does not control, and those prices can fall sharply.), it is not for you. Decide from the thesis, not the ticker. Walnut is not an investment adviser.
More on NEM
- NEM stock guide (what the company does, ETFs that hold it, similar stocks, and the themes it fits)
- NEM stock forecast (the drivers and risks shaping the outlook)
- Does NEM pay a dividend?
Build a basket around NEM with Walnut
Use Newmont as one constituent in a thematic basket Walnut's AI helps you assemble. Describe a thesis you believe in, the AI proposes the holdings and weights, and you approve before any broker order.
FAQ
Is NEM a good stock to buy right now?
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The case for Newmont right now is Leveraged exposure to gold, with revenue (ttm) at ~$20 billion (varies with gold prices). If you believe that thesis holds, NEM is a way to own it and the real questions are sizing and overlap, not timing; the main risk to that view is newmont is a commodity producer, so its revenue and profits swing with the gold price and byproduct metal prices it does not control, and those prices can fall sharply. So it comes down to whether you believe the thesis. Walnut is not an investment adviser and this is not a recommendation.
What does Newmont do?
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Newmont (NEM) is the world's largest gold producer and a leading name in precious-metals mining.
What are the main risks of NEM?
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Newmont is a commodity producer, so its revenue and profits swing with the gold price and byproduct metal prices it does not control, and those prices can fall sharply. Mining is capital intensive and carries operational, geological, environmental, permitting, and safety risks, and unexpected mine problems can cut production. Its global footprint exposes it to country-specific political, regulatory, tax, currency, and labor risks. All-in sustaining costs have risen with energy, labor, and input inflation, squeezing margins if gold does not keep pace. Large acquisitions like Newcrest carry integration and execution risk. The stock is volatile and tied to gold sentiment, real interest rates, and the US dollar. It is a cyclical position, not a steady income or defensive holding.
What is NEM's ticker symbol?
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NEM, listed on the NYSE. Officially Newmont Corporation, headquartered in Denver, Colorado. It trades during US market hours and is available at every major US brokerage. Newmont is the world's largest gold producer.
What does Newmont do?
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Newmont explores for, mines, and sells gold, and is the world's largest gold producer. It also produces byproduct copper, silver, zinc, and lead from a global portfolio of operations across North America, South America, Australia, Africa, and Papua New Guinea. Its results are driven mainly by the gold price, with byproduct metals adding secondary revenue.
How has NEM stock done versus the market?
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Newmont tends to move with the gold price and gold sentiment rather than with the broad stock market, so it can lead when gold is strong and lag when gold is weak, regardless of what the S&P 500 does. That low or shifting correlation is exactly why some investors hold a gold miner as a diversifier. Performance varies widely by period; check current and historical returns before relying on them.
Is NEM a good stock to buy?
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Descriptive, not a recommendation. Newmont offers leveraged exposure to gold and its role as an inflation and safe-haven asset, plus scale, reserves, and byproduct metals, balanced against commodity-price cyclicality, rising mining costs, operational and country risks, and integration risk from large deals. Whether it fits a given portfolio depends on your goals, time horizon, and risk tolerance. Walnut is informational and is not a registered investment adviser, so this is not investment advice.
Walnut is informational and is not an investment adviser. This page is educational and not a recommendation to buy or sell NEM; figures are approximate and dated, and your own situation, time horizon, and risk tolerance should drive any decision. Verify current data before investing.