** Shares of Canadian miner Equinox Gold EQX.TO fall 2.9% to C$9.42

** Co to acquire all outstanding shares of Calibre Mining CXB.TO in an all-stock deal worth C$2.56 billion ($1.80 billion)

** CXB shareholders to receive 0.31 Equinox common shares for each CXB common share held

** Combined company would operate ~11 assets, and is expected to produce more than 1.2 million ounces of gold annually after mines reach full capacity

** CXB's mines would immediately provide cash flow into the combined company and help with quicker debt reduction

** Deal expected to close by Q2 2025

** TD Cowen analysts see the deal as being at a lower valuation compared to the recent Newmont divestitures

** "We would anticipate that some CXB shareholders will be looking for a higher price which includes a change of control premium. There is potential for a superior bid to emerge" - brokerage

** Shares of CXB fall 7.1% to C$2.87

** Including session's moves, EQX has gained ~30% and CXB is up 33.5% YTD

($1 = 1.4234 Canadian dollars)

(Reporting by Vallari Srivastava in Bengaluru)

((Srivastava.Vallari@thomsonreuters.com;))