The Globe and Mail reports in its Thursday, Aug. 7, edition that Royal Gold made waves this summer with two major deals, including a $3.5-billion (U.S.) acquisition of Sandstorm Gold, but its shares have fallen 10 per cent since the announcement. The Globe's Tim Kiladze writes that chief executive officer Bill Heissenbuttel is emphasizing the diversification the acquisition offers, which he claims rival companies often lack. On Wednesday Mr. Heissenbuttel said: "Diversification is extremely important. The weighting of our net asset value is very much toward producing assets," while Sandstorm, which is based in Vancouver, is skewed toward mines that are in development. The CEO said, "We saw the opportunity to put two complementary portfolios together." Streaming companies such as Royal Gold provide miners with cash upfront to fund exploration and development, and in return, the streamers get the right to buy gold from producers at a discounted price in the future. Profits are made by selling this discounted gold in the open market. Royal Gold also announced a significant new streaming deal with First Quantum Minerals this week, backed by First Quantum's Kansanshi copper-gold mine in Zambia.