ASX insiders sold more than $67m worth of shares to cash in on record-breaking run for precious metal
Gold’s has only posted two negative years of returns since 2015, as its breakneck start to 2026 means it’s returns are outpacing virtually all other asset classes globally.
A slew of Australia’s top gold mining executives have sold more than $67 million worth of shares across February to cash in on a record-breaking run for the precious metal.
On Tuesday, the gold price topped $US5200 an ounce amid windfall gains for Australian investors, executives, directors and State Governments.
Analysts said gold’s stunning 77 per cent surge over the past 12 months is due to a mix of speculation and fundamental factors related to the ballooning debt of the US government.
Sign up to The Nightly's newsletters.
Get the first look at the digital newspaper, curated daily stories and breaking headlines delivered to your inbox.
By continuing you agree to our Terms and Privacy Policy.“I don’t think it necessarily means this is the top for gold,” said David Bassanese the chief economist for Betashares. “It’s a good opportunity for these guys to diversify [their wealth] and they’d be sitting on increased value so they might want to cash in on a historic run higher.”
No company directors or executives chose to buy shares in their gold miners across February, with all recorded choosing to take some profits.
New gold rush
Between February 12 and 17, Jake Klein, a gold mining entrepreneur and executive sold 3.25 million shares in Evolution Mining to pocket $51.2 million in cash.
On February 10, James Champion de Crespigny the managing director of West Australian gold miner Catalyst Metals sold 750,000 shares on market for $5.83 million.
While PC Gold executives Kevin Puil and John Menzies sold seven million shares each in the miner for total proceeds of more than $9 million on February 11. Shares in the explorer that owns the Spring Hill and Pine Creek tenements in the Northern Territory have more than tripled over 12 months.
Elsewhere, Steven Michael, a non-executive director at Predictive Discovery sold 2 million shares for $1.8 million, after the stock surged 177 per cent in 12 months. Several other directors have also moved to cash out smaller sums across the ASX.
Mr Bassanese said gold’s run has been “pretty amazing” and that it is now probably gaining in popularity versus digital rival Bitcoin as speculators are worried the latter is vulnerable to disruption linked to artificial intelligence.
“But there’s no AI threats to gold,” Mr Basanesse pointed out. “So it’s not subject to being disrupted as a store of value. And our view is gold has more upside given the price drivers are still in place - a weaker US dollar, Fed rate cuts, geopolitical tensions.”
Australian state governments also charge royalties as a tax on gold sales. The West Australian State Government reaped $739 million in gold royalties during the 2025 financial year, with that figure set to surge for the 12 months to June 30, 2026 based on it charging 2.5 per cent of the value of gold a miner produces.
Gold miners enter ASX/50
According to ASX data, dual ASX and New York Stock Exchange listed gold miner Newmont Corporation is now the third most valuable company on the local market behind only Commonwealth Bank and BHP Group.
Newmont shares have jumped 144 per cent in 12 months, with Northern Star and Evolution Mining meaning there are now three gold miners among the local market’s 50 most valuable companies.
According to broker Canaccord Genuity gold miners have been the best performing asset class for the year to date February 23.
It said a basket of global gold equities has climbed an average of 23.9 per cent, to outpace the returns from all of oil, silver, copper, emerging market equities, European, Australian, or US shares indices.
Gold has only posted negative returns for investors in two years since 2015. In 2018 it lost 2 per cent and in 2021 it lost 4 per cent.
In a blockbuster 2025 it jumped 65 per cent and year to date in 2026 has added another 19 per cent.
