Activist Investor Elliott Targets Barrick in Major Shakeup

A significant upheaval is underway at Barrick Gold Corporation as activist hedge fund Elliott Investment Management has taken a substantial position in the mining giant, simultaneously triggering a management exodus and raising fundamental questions about the company's future structure. Elliott has built a stake valued at a minimum of $700 million, catapulting it into the ranks of Barrick's ten largest shareholders. This aggressive move coincides with interim CEO Mark Hill clearing out the senior leadership team, a development that market observers see as more than mere coincidence.

The top echelons of Barrick's North American operations have experienced a dramatic collapse, signaling deep internal restructuring.

• Kevin Thomson, who led Corporate Development, has departed.
• Christine Keener, the Chief Operating Officer for North America, has exited.
• Kevin Annett, the Chief Financial Officer for North America, has also left.

Their replacements are George Joannou, Tim Cribb, and Wessel Hamman. Furthermore, underscoring the focus on key projects, Chad Coulin was specifically appointed as project director for the strategically vital Reko Diq copper venture in Pakistan. These coordinated departures suggest a purge far beyond normal corporate turnover. In an internal memo, Hill himself labeled the company's safety performance as "deeply concerning" and its operational execution as "inconsistent," strong criticism for a firm that should be capitalizing on a strong gold price environment.

Elliott's Playbook: A Call for Corporate Breakup

The hedge fund is advocating for a radical solution: splitting Barrick into two separate, independent entities. This strategy would effectively reverse the 2019 merger with Randgold, cleaving the safer North American mines from the more politically and operationally risky assets in Africa and Asia.

Should investors sell immediately? Or is it worth buying Barrick?

The logic behind this proposed separation is clear. Highly profitable assets in Nevada, particularly the promising Fourmile project, would be liberated from problematic operations that have dragged on performance. The situation in Mali alone cost Barrick a $1 billion impairment charge in 2025. This period of turmoil was further compounded by the unexpected departure of former CEO Mark Bristow in September. Elliott brings a proven track record to this fight; since 2020, shares of 95% of the companies it has targeted have risen upon news of its involvement, with an average immediate jump of 5.5% and a 35% gain within one year.

A Paradoxical Performance Gap

Despite these internal struggles, Barrick's stock has delivered impressive gains on paper, surging 119% over the past twelve months and recently hitting a new 52-week high. However, this performance reveals a significant weakness when viewed in a broader context. The company's key rivals have advanced by an average of 131% over the same period. Even amidst a powerful gold market rally, Barrick is lagging behind its peers.

This performance gap highlights the structural issues that Elliott and the new leadership seem to have identified as a drag on core business operations. In response, management has announced a consolidation plan to integrate the Dominican Republic operations into the North American unit and to merge the Latin America and Asia-Pacific divisions, aiming to create greater efficiency.

The central question for investors remains whether this internal optimization will be sufficient, or if a full-scale corporate breakup is on the horizon. If Elliott succeeds in imposing its vision, the outcome could be the transformation of a cumbersome global miner into a focused North American champion, potentially unlocking significant value for shareholders.