Composite Score 16/25

Management Skin-in-the-Game

3/5

HISTORICAL RECORD — SSL is no longer publicly traded. Sandstorm Gold was delisted from the TSX and NYSE on or around October 22-23, 2025 following the close of the Royal Gold acquisition. This scorecard reflects the company's profile at the time of acquisition.

Nolan Watson co-founded Sandstorm Gold in 2008 after serving as CFO of Silver Wheaton (now Wheaton Precious Metals) at age 26 — credited with co-pioneering the precious metals streaming model. At the time of the Royal Gold acquisition announcement (July 7, 2025), Watson held approximately 1,359,065 shares (~0.63% of ~215M shares outstanding), with his most recent open-market purchase of 27,200 shares on April 15, 2024. Personal holdings were valued at approximately US$8-10M at deal price — material but modest relative to a ~US$3.5B enterprise. Watson abstained from the board vote approving the Royal Gold arrangement due to a disclosed conflict of interest: he held a significant interest in Horizon Copper Corp., which Royal Gold simultaneously acquired as part of the same transaction package. ISS (Institutional Shareholder Services) recommended shareholders vote in favour. Source: businesswire.com Royal Gold acquisition announcement Jul 6, 2025; stocktitan.net shareholder vote Oct 9, 2025.

Score of 3/5: experienced founder management with a proven track record in the streaming model, real personal ownership, and appropriate conflict-of-interest management. Modest personal stake relative to company scale and the Horizon Copper conflict of interest prevent a higher score.

Project Geology Quality

3/5

HISTORICAL RECORD — SSL is no longer publicly traded. Sandstorm Gold was a precious metals royalty and streaming company — this factor is adapted to assess portfolio quality rather than direct mineral resources.

At acquisition close (October 2025), Sandstorm held 243 streams and royalties (per Q2 2025 reporting), with approximately 40 cash-flowing producing assets. The portfolio generated FY2024 attributable gold equivalent ounces of 72,810 GEOs on US$176.3M revenue. FY2025 guidance: 65,000-80,000 GEOs; long-term 2030 target: 150,000 GEOs/year. Key assets: Hod Maden (Turkey) — a 20% gold stream (50% spot until 405,000 oz, then 12% life-of-mine at 60% spot) plus a 2% NSR, with production expected approximately 2028; Greenstone (Ontario, Canada) — Equinox Gold operation, commenced production Q3 2024 and ramping; MARA stream option (Argentina) — exclusive gold stream option integral to the 150,000 GEO/year 2030 target; Oyu Tolgoi Hugo North Extension (Mongolia) — via Entrée Resources. Source: prnewswire.com Sandstorm Q2 2025 record results; prnewswire.com 2024 annual results Feb 18, 2025.

Score of 3/5: diversified producing portfolio of approximately 40 assets with a significant development-stage growth stream (Hod Maden, ~2028). The two largest growth assets — Hod Maden and MARA — were not yet in production at acquisition. The geology framework is inherently less applicable to a royalty/streaming company than to a direct mining operation; this score reflects portfolio quality and coverage rather than mineral resource classification.

Capital Structure Health

3/5

HISTORICAL RECORD — SSL is no longer publicly traded. As of Q2 2025 (last quarterly report before acquisition announcement): total debt US$315M on a US$625M revolving credit facility (approximately 50% drawn; renewed December 2024 for 4 years at SOFR + 1.75-2.75%). Q2 2025 revenue: US$51.4M (record; +24% year-over-year). Q2 2025 operating cash flow (ex. working capital changes): US$37.7M; Q1 2025: US$40.8M — approximately US$150-160M annual run rate. Q2 2025 cash operating margin: US$2,981/GEO (record). Net debt repaid in Q2 2025: US$25M; total debt at August 7, 2025: US$315M. Shares outstanding: approximately 215 million. Source: prnewswire.com Sandstorm Q2 2025 record results; prnewswire.com Sandstorm Q1 2025 results.

Active normal course issuer bid: approximately 3.1M shares repurchased in Q1 2025 for US$19.1M (approximately US$6.16/share average); 2.0M shares in full-year 2024. Quarterly dividend of C$0.02/share paid consistently through 2024 and into 2025; final dividend paid October 7, 2025 (two weeks before delisting). FY2024 net income: US$15.5M; operating cash flow US$139.0M.

Score of 3/5: the US$315M drawn balance is meaningful relative to the approximately US$200M annual revenue run rate (approximately 1.6x debt/revenue) but the credit facility had substantial undrawn capacity (US$310M available). Operating margins were at record levels. Buybacks and dividends signal capital discipline. The leverage level and royalty-company business model (no NAV discount required) prevent both a high and a low score.

Catalyst Proximity

4/5

HISTORICAL RECORD — SSL is no longer publicly traded. Hod Maden (Turkey) was the defining long-term catalyst: a 20% gold stream expected to commence production approximately 2028, representing the single largest contributor to the company's 2030 target of 150,000 GEOs/year — approximately 2x the FY2025 guidance rate of 65,000-80,000 GEOs. Development progress was ongoing at acquisition close. The magnitude of this stream, combined with the favourable cost structure (deliveries at 50% of spot until 405,000 oz, then 12% of spot for life-of-mine), made Hod Maden a uniquely powerful long-dated cash flow asset that was not yet contributing production.

The Greenstone mine (Equinox Gold, Ontario) commenced production Q3 2024 and was ramping toward nameplate capacity through 2025, delivering incremental quarterly GEO growth. The MARA exclusive stream option (Argentina) provided a further major development-stage asset. Q2 2025 marked the fifth consecutive quarter of record cash operating margins, driven by gold price tailwinds. Source: prnewswire.com Sandstorm development asset updates Nov 2024; prnewswire.com Q2 2025 record results.

Score of 4/5: Hod Maden represents a high-impact catalyst with a clear production timeline (approximately 2028), and portfolio diversification reduces single-asset risk. The 2030 GEO target (150,000 GEOs from approximately 72,000 in 2025 FY actuals) represents compelling potential value creation — which is precisely why Royal Gold paid a 21% premium to acquire the portfolio.

Comparable Acquisition Value

3/5

HISTORICAL RECORD — SSL is no longer publicly traded. Pre-announcement analyst consensus price target: US$10.57/share (8 analysts, consensus 'Outperform'). Approximate pre-announcement market price (before July 7, 2025): US$9.20-9.30/share (implied by the 21% premium to VWAP and the 17% premium to the July 3, 2025 closing price noted in acquisition filings). The Royal Gold acquisition was announced July 7, 2025 at an implied price of US$11.24/share (exchange ratio: 0.0625 RGLD shares per SSL share), representing a 21% premium to the 20-day VWAP and a 17% premium to the last pre-announcement closing price. Total equity value: approximately US$3.5-3.6B. Source: sec.gov Royal Gold press release Jul 7, 2025; businesswire.com Royal Gold acquires Sandstorm Oct 20, 2025.

Applying the pre-announcement market price of approximately US$9.20 to the analyst consensus NAV estimate of US$10.57: P/NAV was approximately 0.87x. This is consistent with Sandstorm's historical tendency to trade at a modest discount to analyst estimates, reflecting the development-stage weight of the portfolio (Hod Maden not yet producing, MARA option not exercised). As a royalty/streaming company, no PEA/PFS/FS discount is applied to the NAV — the analyst NPV model is the appropriate framework. Royal Gold's willingness to pay 21% above market (and above analyst consensus) confirms the portfolio was undervalued at pre-deal prices.

Score of 3/5: pre-deal P/NAV of approximately 0.87x falls within the 0.5-1.0x range. The 21% acquisition premium validates intrinsic value was above market, but pre-announcement P/NAV was not deeply discounted enough to score 4/5 (would require < 0.50x).

Analyst Summary

HISTORICAL RECORD — Sandstorm Gold (TSX:SSL) was acquired by Royal Gold Inc. and delisted from the TSX and NYSE on or around October 22-23, 2025. SSL shares are no longer publicly traded. This scorecard applies the Verdict Framework retrospectively to the company's profile at acquisition close. Note: Sandstorm was a precious metals royalty and streaming company — not a junior mining company. Factor 2 (Geology) is adapted to assess royalty portfolio quality. The company receives a WATCH verdict with a composite score of 16/25. Strongest factors were Catalyst Proximity (4/5) — anchored by the Hod Maden gold stream (Turkey, expected production approximately 2028) and the 150,000 GEO/year 2030 target — and Acquisition Value (3/5), where the Royal Gold transaction at a 21% premium to 20-day VWAP with 98.68% shareholder approval validated the undervaluation thesis at pre-deal market prices.

Weaker factors were Management (3/5) — founder Nolan Watson held approximately 0.63% of shares personally, real but modest relative to company scale, with a conflict of interest disclosed at the time of the deal vote — and Capital Structure (3/5), with US$315M drawn on a US$625M revolving facility. The geology/portfolio score (3/5) reflects a strong producing portfolio of approximately 40 assets but with the two largest growth drivers (Hod Maden, MARA) not yet in production at acquisition. Pre-announcement P/NAV was approximately 0.87x analyst consensus NAV of US$10.57.

The catalysts that made Sandstorm an attractive acquisition target for Royal Gold — Hod Maden production (approximately 2028), Greenstone ramp-up, MARA stream option, and the 2030 150,000 GEO target — are now being realized through Royal Gold's broader portfolio following the October 20, 2025 close of the arrangement at 0.0625 RGLD shares per SSL share (implied US$11.24/share at announcement; shares traded to US$13.09 all-time high on October 16, 2025 as the spread to Royal Gold's price closed ahead of delisting).

Sandstorm Gold Ltd.