Steve Hyland

How to Still Finds 10-Bagger Gold and Silver Stocks | Don Durrett

Gold and silver miners offer substantial upside as rising debt, bond market fragility, and economic instability drive investors toward safe haven assets. Prioritize solvency first and upside second when analyzing mining stocks, favoring established producers and developers over risky small exploration projects. Management quality is critical for mining investments; experienced CEOs with proven track records significantly reduce execution risk and protect shareholder value.

Why Risk Assets May Have Already Peaked | Mike McGlone

Mike McGlone warns of a broad macro reset that could drive risk assets, including stocks and Bitcoin, significantly lower as deflationary pressures mount. He expects crude oil prices to fall sharply into the midterms, viewing the recent geopolitical price spike as a temporary pump-and-dump cycle. Investors should adopt a highly defensive posture by overweighting long Treasuries and holding cash, as even precious metals may have peaked.

Blackrock Silver Lets Be Realistic On This PEA

Blackrock Silver's updated Tonopah West PEA shows promising economics but investors must separate realistic valuations from retail hype. A near-term buyout is less likely than many retail investors anticipate, requiring a more grounded approach to the stock's premium. The video breaks down key project metrics including NPV, IRR, capital costs, and operating costs to assess fair market value.

The Next Market Meltdown May Already Be Starting | Todd Bubba Horwitz

Todd Horwitz remains short oil, gold, and equities, viewing the current market rally as a temporary dead cat bounce rather than a sustainable recovery. The underlying economic weakness, including a K-shaped economy, private credit stress, and overleveraged banks, poses a far greater systemic risk than geopolitical headlines. Physical gold is preferred over mining stocks as a safe haven, while AI-driven job destruction could further destabilize the already fragile consumer economy. The Federal Reserve is running out of options to manage the growing economic deterioration, increasing the likelihood of a significant market meltdown.

How First Majestic Built a Silver Empire

First Majestic built a silver empire through strategic acquisitions and consolidation rather than high-risk greenfield exploration. Portfolio includes key assets San Dimas, Santa Elena, and Los Gatos, positioning the company as a liquid proxy for silver. Record 2025 financial results and strong silver fundamentals set the stage for continued growth heading into 2026.

Aya Gold Q4 2025: Stock Gets A Lift Despite Guidance Miss

Aya Gold & Silver posted strong revenue and production growth following the Zgounder expansion, but underlying issues are raising investor concerns. Growing concerns around declining processed grades at Zgounder and guidance misses suggest the company's silver story may face challenges. Investors must weigh whether strong silver prices can offset operational weaknesses and if the market is overlooking critical red flags.

Agnico Just Picked Its Next Gold Bet

Agnico Eagle formed a strategic alliance with Cascadia Minerals, taking an equity stake in the grassroots explorer to fund future copper-gold drilling. The deal centers on Cascadia's Catch project in the Yukon, positioning Agnico early around a promising new copper-gold discovery. This transaction highlights how major mining companies are actively hunting for the next big discovery in the competitive Yukon exploration landscape.

The Playbook Behind a $5.5 Billion Gold Sale | Peter Marrone

• Top takeaway The host, who discloses The Deep Dive is long Allied Gold, frames the deal as a multi-billion-dollar takeout and probes whether Allied's 3.7x cash-flow multiple reflects an emerging-markets discount.
• He uses the platform to spotlight Sendero Resources as a stock The Deep Dive previously covered and is long, citing Marrone's sponsorship as the catalyst.

Allied Gold (AAUC) agreed to a $5.5B all-cash sale to Zijin at roughly a 70% premium to its all-time high, pending a March shareholder vote. CEO Peter Marrone anchors the price to a sober gold price and net asset value, not spot, framing the deal as top-end fundamental value. Management frames the cash deal as defensive, locking a floor on the share price amid gold swings of $700 in a week. After closing, Marrone plans to deploy personal capital into broken junior mining structures, citing Allied's jump from roughly $900M to $5.5B in 2.5 years. His current sponsorships — Sendero Resources in Argentina's Vicuña copper-gold district and Karas in British Columbia — are positioned as calculated moonshots.

Gold Is At Records. Barrick Is Printing Cash. The Stock Still Fell. | Q4 Earnings

• Top takeaway The host argues Barrick looks undervalued on relative metrics — EV/net income of 14.9x and EV/EBITDA of 7.1x versus peer averages of 21.6x and 9.4x — and frames that valuation gap as the call to watch.
• He highlights the disconnect between Q4 results and the tape: shares fell up to 6% on the print even as revenue, adjusted earnings, and EPS all beat, framing it as a 'lose-lose' pattern for mining equities.
• He calls 2026 guidance a 'letdown': gold guided to 2.9–3.3M oz (down YoY) and copper essentially flat at 190–220k tons, against 2025's average gold price of $3,501/oz.
• He frames the dividend hike (+140% to $0.42/share), $500M in buybacks, and the new 50%-of-attributable-FCF payout policy as the bright spot for shareholder returns.
• His overall stance: if gold and silver consolidate near current levels, owning Barrick should 'do all right', but he warns 2025 may be the peak of earning power until the IPO of the North American Gold assets closes in late 2026.

Barrick Mining's record Q4 2025 — $6B revenue and $1.04 adjusted EPS that beat $0.85 consensus — still triggered a 6% stock drop. The producer ended 2025 in a $2B net cash position, lifted its dividend 140% to $0.42, and committed 50% of attributable free cash flow back to shareholders. 2026 guidance of 2.9-3.3 million gold ounces sits below 2025's 3.3 million, signalling flat-to-down production even with gold at record prices. New CEO Mark Hill replaced Mark Bristow and shifted guidance 'bottom up', giving mine-plan ownership back to site teams. Barrick plans a late-2026 IPO of its North American gold assets while keeping a controlling stake, suggesting 2025 may mark peak earnings.

SSR Mining’s Hod Maden: Incredible Gold Project, Awkward Deal

• Top takeaway The host frames Hod Maden as one of the highest-margin, lowest-capital-intensity undeveloped copper-gold projects globally but underscores that SSR only captures 40% of the upside despite doing all the operational heavy lifting.
• The host stresses that, even with the awkward deal structure, about 91% of the new technical report's cost estimates are firm (awarded contracts or based on recent tender submissions), making the economic assessment unusually credible.

SSR Mining's Hod Maden project in Turkey is fully permitted, with AISC (All-In Sustaining Cost — what it really costs to produce an ounce) of $590/oz and a $1.7B NPV. The host argues the project's economics are muted for SSR shareholders because the company does all the work but keeps only 40% of profits. The updated technical report targets 189,000 gold-equivalent ounces annually over a 13-year mine life, with go-forward capex of $910M. Royal Gold's $3.7B purchase of Sandstorm Gold and Horizon Copper included a competing 30% non-operating interest in the same Hod Maden asset. At $4,117/oz gold, the project's NPV rises to $2.4B and IRR to 52%, though SSR's minority share still caps per-share upside.

The Silver Squeeze | Why the Paper Steakhouse Is Running Out of Meat.

• Top takeaway The host argues the COMEX is approaching a wall on the February 27th notice day, with registered silver at roughly 103 million ounces against 429-528 million ounces of open interest — meaning even 20% of contract holders standing for delivery would exhaust available supply.
• He points to a 7x acceleration in January delivery demand (49 million ounces versus a typical 7 million) and 17.8 million ounces standing for delivery in the first week of February 2026.
• The host stresses a structural deficit entering its sixth consecutive year, with 80% of silver mined as a byproduct of lead, zinc and copper — capping supply even as AI, EV and solar demand accelerates.
• He flags a global inventory drain — Shanghai at lows since 2016, London at historic lows, and China classifying silver as a strategic metal with export controls and a hefty physical premium over the paper price.
• The host warns the CME has historically intervened to protect shorts (Silver Rule 7 in January 1980 during the Hunt Brothers squeeze, five margin hikes in nine days in 2011), so he treats silver miners and paper ETFs as short-term rentals and prefers physical metal for long-term exposure, calling major producers undervalued at current prices.

Registered COMEX silver has fallen 70% since 2020, with January 2026 deliveries 7x the typical 7 million-ounce pace. Roughly 80% of silver is mined as a byproduct of copper, zinc, and lead, capping supply as solar, EV, and AI demand surge. Exchanges have used rule changes and margin hikes to suppress rallies — 1980's Rule 7 halted buying and 2011 saw five margin hikes in nine days. Only 103 million registered ounces sit against 429–528 million in open interest, so the February 27th first-notice day could expose real stress. The host treats physical metal as the only no-counterparty-risk silver exposure and argues miners look undervalued at current paper prices.

Platinum and Palladium Are Being Repriced | Nick Smart - Valore Metals

• Top takeaway The host frames PGEs as a watch-list worthy opportunity for value-seeking investors following the late-2025 precious metals run-up and correction
• Hyland notes The Deep Dive rarely interviews PGE-focused companies, framing this episode as an educational primer on the sector

PGEs (platinum group elements) were repriced in late 2025 on structural supply deficits that the pullback did not erase. PGE demand now rests on three pillars: catalytic converters in ICE and hybrid vehicles, jewelry substitution as gold prices rise, and growing investment flows. Hybrid vehicles use more platinum and palladium per catalytic converter than pure internal combustion engines, keeping auto-catalyst PGE demand intact. About 90% of global PGE reserves sit in South Africa, making advanced-stage projects elsewhere — like Valore's Pedra Branca in Brazil — rare. Valore's Pedra Branca project holds a 2.2 million ounce inferred PGE resource and is targeting a PEA by year-end 2026.

Gold and Silver in Chaos: What Comes After the Pullback?

• Top takeaway The guest argues gold and silver are anti-dollar assets whose structural bull case, built on debasement, de-dollarization, and central bank buying, is unchanged as of February 2026 even after the pullback.
• He frames the recent drop, silver falling from $120 to about $70 and gold sliding from the $5,400 range to about $4,400, as a healthy flush after a parabolic move and warns that short-term volatility is the only certainty.
• He treats silver as part meme stock, with ETF inflows dwarfing the S&P 500 and panic buying ahead of Lunar New Year duties in China and India, but stresses its industrial demand from solar panels and AI data center build-outs as the picks and shovels of the cycle.
• He calls the pullback a gift for buyers of junior miners, arguing their deposits did not disappear even though share prices got washed out alongside the metals.
• He flags yield curve control, with the government buying up the entire bond curve to suppress rates, as the next shoe to drop and the end game for the dollar.

Silver dropped from $120 to $70 and gold slid from $5,400 to $4,400 in a sharp pullback, but the long-term bull case remains intact. Kevin Warsh's contradictory Fed policy — a smaller balance sheet paired with lower rates — would force yield curve control. Gold and silver are barometers of fiat trust; Nixon's unlinking, QE, and looming yield curve control are eroding dollar credibility. Silver's industrial role is growing; solar panel costs have shifted from 3% silver to nearly 40%, driven by AI and solar buildouts. Junior mining stocks are a 'gift' after the pullback — deposits remain in the ground and the systemic debasement case is unchanged.

McEwen Buys Golden Lake | A Small Deal With a Big Lesson

• Top takeaway Hyland argues the McEwen/Golden Lake deal proves there is still plenty of value to be found in junior miners through closeology and a bit of drill-bit luck
• He benchmarks the 60% premium against other recent gold M&A: Core/New Gold at 16%, Fresnillo/Probe Gold at 39%, and IAMGOLD/Northern Superior at 27%
• He highlights McEwen's pattern of acquiring juniors adjacent to existing operations as a strategy he expects to continue
• He frames the deal as a sign that it is finally becoming a good time to be a speculator in mining equities

McEwen's all-stock acquisition of Golden Lake at a 60% premium validates the closeology thesis for penny juniors sitting next to producing mines. Golden Lake's Jewel Ridge claims sit adjacent to McEwen's Eureka/Gold Bar complex, sandwiched next to the Windfall and Lookout Mountain discoveries. Junior deal premia dwarf typical mining M&A: Core/New Gold at 16%, Fresnillo/Probe Gold at 39%, IAMGOLD/Northern Superior at 27%. McEwen's 2025 plan calls for 36,000 meters of drilling in Nevada, with Eureka central to extending Gold Bar's mine life.

Gold X2 Moss Lake PEA | Leverage to $5000 Gold

• Top takeaway Hyland argues the PEA's $2,750 base case is effectively irrelevant and frames Moss Gold as a leveraged play on higher gold prices.
• He acknowledges the project is capital-intensive ($2B initial capex) and that the stock is sitting in the difficult part of the Lassonde curve where investors can lose interest.
• He argues valuation may matter more than the curve in this environment, pointing to Gold X2's low 0.08x–0.23x EV/NPV versus a 0.05x–2.2x range he observed for Canadian developers.
• He notes permitting is set to begin in H2 of the year following the PEA, with a feasibility study targeted over the next two years before construction is considered.

Moss Gold could average 265,000 oz/year at $1,188/oz AISC over 13.2 years, but the $2B capex makes base-case economics only marginal. At $2,750 gold, NPV sits at $2.2B CAD with a 3.2-year payback; at $4,600 gold, NPV leaps to $6.6B CAD with a one-year payback. The PEA only counts open-pit ounces (2.1M oz indicated, 3.9M oz inferred), leaving underground material as future upside. Gold X2 trades at 0.23x EV/NPV — near the cheap end of the 0.05x to 2.2x range seen across Canadian developers. Moss is years from construction: feasibility study targeted within two years, permitting to begin in the second half of next year.

Did Gold and Silver Go Too Far Too Fast | Lobo Tiggre

• Top takeaway Notes that Rick Rule's announcement at VRIC that he had sold 80% of his physical silver was met with silent acceptance from an audience of 1,000-plus, reading that tolerance as evidence the precious-metals crowd is not yet in the 2011-style manic phase
• Argues that producer equities modeled on sub-2,000-dollar gold would still be gushing cash even if gold fell 50% from current levels, and warns that any official bear-market 20% drawdown in the metals would likely hit equities roughly twice as hard

Lobo frames the new Fed chair as a market overreaction -- policy direction was already priced in regardless of nominee. Gold and silver charts look vertical, but Lobo prefers consolidation over another leg up to set up a longer bull run. Producers built at sub-$2,000 gold still print cash after a 50% metal drop, yet equities typically oversell in corrections. Lobo is not buying gold or silver equities here; he favors oil stocks and would only add majors on a confirmed breakout. Copper and uranium offer compelling demand cases but their equities have held up well, so Lobo waits for lower entries.