Jeff Clark's Top Mining Stock Picks

Host Adam Taggart says gold and silver have been battered to their lows for the year, while analysts including Brian London argue that mining companies may now offer “generational opportunities.” He republishes a bonus presentation from Thoughtful Money’s 2026 fall online conference by Jeff Clark, who runs The Gold Advisor and the Pater Prospector. Clark says he will explain why he remains bullish on gold, review developments beneath the market’s negative headlines, and identify mining stocks across several risk categories. Taggart later emphasizes that the presentation is educational rather than personal financial advice.

Clark begins with the seemingly hostile backdrop: the 10-year yield reached 5.35%, its highest level in 24 years; the U.S. dollar gained 2% in one month; CPI reached 3.4%, above the Federal Reserve’s 2% target; and the Fed had already raised rates, with futures implying an 85% chance of another hike. He nevertheless argues that gold has risen alongside yields since the end of 2021, an unusual four-year trend indicating strength and institutional buying. He also says central banks continue accumulating gold, with purchases up sharply and 2026 on track to exceed 2025.

Clark points to several developments he believes are occurring beneath the headlines. Central banks added gold 39 times in the latest period cited, up 70% from the prior month and twice the level a year earlier; a World Gold Council survey showed the share expecting to increase reserves continuing to rise. China has bought gold for 23 consecutive months, is expected to reach 24 months, and reportedly holds more than $323 billion in gold reserves. Clark says China’s purchases accelerated in the second quarter of 2026 as it diversified away from the dollar. Global gold ETFs also recorded their largest quarterly inflow ever in Q3, reflecting institutional, fund-manager, and retail demand.

Clark compares the current gold bull market, which he dates to leap day 2024, with the 1976–1980 gold bull market. He says the two price paths have a correlation coefficient of nearly 93%, an unusually close match. If the pattern continued, he expects gold could remain flat for a while before breaking out; the historical analogue would imply a rise of more than double from current levels, potentially reaching $10,000 gold within roughly a year to a year and a half. Clark stresses that he is not predicting this outcome, only highlighting the potential implied by the comparison.

Clark argues that mining equities have not participated fully in gold’s rise. He says free-cash-flow yields projected for 2026, 2027, and 2028 are the highest recorded in his chart, while price-to-net-asset-value measures show the companies as the cheapest on record. Gold’s ratio to the Nasdaq remains near all-time lows, meaning gold is still inexpensive relative to technology stocks, and the HUI mining index is no higher relative to gold than it was in 2020—and lower than in 2016, 2011, 2003, and 1979–80. Mining equities represent only 2% of global equities, with roughly $400 billion in market capitalization versus $8.5 trillion in global cash and a $127 trillion bond market.

Clark divides mining companies into four categories. Pre-discovery companies carry the highest risk, with discovery as the principal catalyst. Pre-resource companies have made discoveries but lack a formal resource; their key catalyst is an inaugural resource estimate. Resource builders already have resources, and Clark wants evidence that drilling could double or triple them. Developers are further along, ideally approaching a construction decision and first production. He wants developers that are de-risking their assets and could attract a major producer. His central test is whether the project is large, high-grade, long-lived, and located in a mining-friendly jurisdiction—and therefore whether a major would want to buy it.

Clark’s first pre-discovery pick is Bullfrog Gold, whose Nevada property sits in a “donut hole” between deposits owned by Kinross and AngloGold Ashanti. Its initial drill program is about to begin, with assays expected before year-end; Clark believes a successful discovery could prompt one of the surrounding majors to acquire it. He owns the stock and participated in a private placement. His second pick is Sun Come Up Metals, which has copper-gold properties in the Solomon Islands on the same trend as major deposits, including one with more than 71 million ounces of resources. CEO John Florig, whom Clark favors, is overseeing imminent first assays.

Clark calls Ara Metals a buy after reporting a drill interval of 905 meters grading 0.6% gold and 0.12% copper in mining-friendly Ecuador; he values the company at at least C$2 per share and expects more drilling. Cascadia Minerals is drilling deeper, higher-grade sulfides beneath a Yukon resource and could be re-rated if results continue. Getty Copper is drilling beside the Highland Valley Copper mine in British Columbia; Clark cites multiple strong intervals and says Highland Valley might want Getty’s material to improve mill feed. Rackla Metals is drilling a high-grade tungsten project for the first time in 44 years. Sunpeak Metals is exploring several copper-gold projects in Saudi Arabia, while Pacifica Silver is pursuing a significant silver-gold resource near Durango, Mexico.

Clark’s resource-builder picks include A2 Gold, which already has about one million ounces in Nevada and may grow to two or three million; Banyan Gold, with 8.6 million ounces in Yukon, infrastructure, permits, and nearby Hecla; and Mackie Gold and Silver, which has consolidated a historic Nevada district and is running two drill programs. Among developers, Nucor Gold has a resource and continuing positive drilling in Ghana; a new royalty would add roughly $150 to its all-in sustaining costs but is not, in Clark’s view, a deal killer. Grand Portage’s Alaska project has 1.4 million indicated ounces, more than half a million inferred ounces, and a PEA after-tax NPV of $721 million at $3,200 gold, versus a stated market cap of $55 million. Clark expects first pour around 2030–31 but thinks a major may acquire it before then.

Clark introduces Pater Discoveries, a newsletter covering copper, uranium, base metals, and critical metals, alongside his gold- and silver-focused publications, free Gold Advisor and Silver Advisor letters, a private-placement service for high-net-worth investors, and books on mining and silver. He says the publications only include companies he or his team would own and that subscribers receive sell or buy-more decisions that may not be obvious from public price moves. Taggart warns that junior mining stocks are highly volatile and says investors should assess portfolio allocation and possible hedges with a qualified adviser familiar with the sector. He directs viewers to ThoughtfulMoney.com for free adviser consultations and to the conference replay.