American Eagle shares soar on Teck investment updraft

American Eagle Gold (TSX: AE; US-OTC: AMEGF) shares jumped nearly 50% on Monday on news that Teck Resources (TSX: TECK.A/TECK.B; NYSE: TECK) is buying a 15% stake in the British Columbia-focused copper explorer.

American Eagle will issue a total of 14.4 million flow-through shares at 20.5¢ each to raise nearly $3 million. Teck, which is still being targeted in a hostile takeover bid by Glencore (LSE: GLEN), is stepping in to buy the issued shares at the back end of the financing at 13¢ apiece for $1.9 million.

American Eagle CEO Anthony Moreau describes the deal as a massive endorsement of the company’s NAK project near Smithers and brings much-needed visibility to the small junior —one of hundreds vying for attention and cash from majors.

“The majors are looking for scale,” he tells The Northern Miner in an interview. “If the major has conducted its due diligence and endorsed the company and project, what stops the retail and institutional investor from sitting up and taking notice?”

The deal fully funds American Eagle’s planned summer drilling program at NAK, a copper-gold porphyry project. The 6,000-metre program is expected to start in June.

The team comes off a strong 2022 field season, having discovered broad intercepts of bornite-bearing copper-gold porphyry mineralization. Among the highlights were hole NAK22-01, which returned 126 metres grading 1.05% copper-equivalent from surface, NAK22-02, which cut 301 metres of 0.61% copper-equivalent from surface and NAK22-04:, which returned 527 metres of 0.45% copper-equivalent from the surface, including 89 metres of 0.98% copper-equivalent.

“(This year’s) objective is to continue advancing our property by expanding its known mineralized footprint and identifying the high-grade source of the copper and gold on NAK,” Moreau says.

American Eagle will use the flow-through financing’s proceeds to follow up on priority targets revealed by the 2022 work program and work to determine the size of the deposit. The team will also work to better understand, expand and define the orientation and distribution of higher-grade zones of dyke-hosted bornite material, expand the high-grade surface gold footprint and to undertake step-out drilling on the southern margin of the central Babine stock porphyry.

Moreau says the NAK bornite structures entail the holy grail of copper ores, comprising up to two-thirds copper by weight and ranking as the easiest processable copper ore. An initial resource estimate is pencilled in for late 2024.

Swiss-based major Glencore on Apr. 27 confirmed its US$23-billion hostile offer for Teck still stands, so Teck’s small investment raises questions about its timing. While Teck remains mum on its reasoning behind the American Eagle investment, save to say it’s for ‘investment purposes,’ it could be seen as a small act of defiance, showing Glencore that until a formal deal has been signed, it will continue to conduct its business as it pleases.

Vancouver-based Teck on Apr. 26 scrapped its plan to split out the coal business unit ahead of a shareholder vote. Glencore is circling with its offer made in March and is armed with the promise of a sweeter offer to come directly to Teck shareholders. It has indicated it would split up the Teck business units itself.

Glencore says it’s willing to engage with Teck’s board to improve its proposal structure but would still make an offer directly to Teck shareholders if there was no response.

Shares in American Eagle on Monday jumped to an intra-day high of 15.5¢, up nearly 50%, before settling lower at 14¢ during midday trades. Shares have touched a low at 2¢ and a high at 33.5¢ during the past 12 months, giving it a market capitalization of $11 million.