Agnico Eagle Mines Ltd (AEM)

[Sam Dan]

SOMEONE LOVES AEM-IMPRESSIVE RATING!!

The Globe and Mail reports in its Monday edition carnage in the energy sector has taken a substantial toll on the S&P/TSX composite index in recent months. The Globe's Luke Kawa writes, however, there are a number of Canadian stocks that stand to get a boost in this "new normal" of low oil. Gold miners count oil among their key input costs, so the slide in crude has offered some relief at a time when the price of the precious metal has hovered below $1,200 per ounce. However, while Barrick has hedged roughly half of its exposure to oil for 2015 at a price 30 per cent above current levels, other firms are poised to reap considerably larger rewards. Agnico Eagle Mines is Credit Suisse's top pick in the space, as it stands to benefit more than its competitors from the decline in the price of crude oil as well as the depreciation of the loonie and the euro relative to the greenback. "We estimate that 10 per cent of AEM's operating expenses are oil related," said Credit Suisse analyst Anita Soni. "We do not see these relative benefits being factored in as AEM has underperformed peers by 5 per cent since the beginning of September." Agnico Eagle shares closed on Wednesday, Dec. 24, at $27.54, up 79 cents.