Top Gold Stocks Quick Picks:

7. Lundin Gold
6. Barrick Gold
5. B2Gold
4. GoldCorp
3. Agnico Eagle Mines
2. Detour Gold
1. Franco Nevada

It’s been a rough go for gold investors over the past number of years!

After gold’s meteoric rise through mid-2011, its subsequent crash decimated the sector. Since reaching its high in September 2011, the TMX Gold Index has lost approximately 60% of its value.

During the gold rush, gold companies became unhinged, making poor financial management decisions.

As such, they weren’t prepared for gold’s sudden weakness, which led to significant write-downs. Their share prices were punished accordingly.

The good news? gold is quietly making a comeback, and that is good news for Canadian gold stocks

As Trump’s protectionist policies continue to rattle the market, gold has been making yearly highs, and this spells good news for mining and Gold Stocks.

While the market has turned red, gold is up approximately 2% year-to-date. Gold has long been considered a safe haven for investors in times of uncertainty. In the face of recent volatility, investors have begun to once again warm to the precious metal.

There is also another catalyst that can support gold’s price. Industry experts believe we have reached peak gold in 2017, which means that moving forward, world gold extraction will decline.

There has been a significant decrease in exploration and the lack of reserve replacements has bullish experts calling for $1,500 gold by end of 2018.

What about rising interest rates? How will they affect Canadian gold stocks?

Historically, gold and interest rates have been negatively correlated. As interest rates rise, the price of gold decreases, and vice-versa. However, we live in much different times.

A recent report by Goldman Sachs (GS) points to a decoupling of this correlation. GS, which has an outperform rating on gold, found that

“based on empirical data for the past six tightening cycles, gold has outperformed post rate hikes four times.”

Of note, it’s the first time in five years that GS has turned bullish on the precious metal.

A well-balanced portfolio should contain a small percentage of gold exposure

Why? It can serve as a hedge in case of a market downturn.

The following is a list of the top TSX-listed gold stocks. The TSX is chocked full of mature and junior gold stocks and it is very important for investors to do their own due diligence when looking at gold stocks in Canada.

If you are not sure where to start, be sure to sign up to our newsletter as we will be providing subscribers with a step-by-step guide on how to analyze stocks.

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If you like our list of the top gold stocks, don’t forget to check out our other lists:

Top Oil Stocks
Top Canadian Dividend Stocks
Best Stocks To Buy In Canada For Growth
Best Canadian Bank Stocks
Top Canadian Marijuana Stocks

Here are our top 7 Canadian gold stocks for 2018

7) Lundin Gold Inc.

Price As Of April 19th 2018: $5.19
Ticker: LUG.TO
Sector: Mining
Industry: Gold
P/E: N/A
EPS: $-.34
P/B: 2.64
Market Cap: $1.11 Billion
Dividend Yield: N/A
Click here to see their charts and opinions

Lundin Gold Inc. makes the list not for its current production, but for its future potential. It may not be one of the top gold stocks in Canada right now, but it makes our list because it has the potential to explode.

The company is currently building its flagship Fruta del Norte in Ecuador. The company is poised to build the mine on time and on budget, and it will be the biggest mine in the country.

Production is targeted to start by the end of 2019 and the mine has a 15-year reserve life, which is expected to produce over 325,000 ounces of gold annually.

Recently, the company secured $250 million in financing from one of the world’s largest gold producers, Australia’s Newcrest Mining Ltd, to complete the construction of the mine.

So far, the company has proven adept in building the mine and recent investments by larger players also exude confidence.

However, the company has even more ambitious plans. Once the Ecuador mine is built, the company wants to grow operations to 1 million-ounces a year through the operation of handful of properties.

6) Barrick Gold Corp.

Price As Of May 8th 2018: $17.12
Ticker: ABX.TO
Sector: Mining
Industry: Gold
P/E: 13.92
EPS: $1.23
P/B: 2.15
Market Cap: $19.98 Billion
Dividend Yield: 0.96%
Click here to see their charts and opinions

Barrick Gold, the world’s largest gold producer was all but written off by investors a few years ago. But now it has potential to be one of the top gold stocks in Canada, which is why it has broke our list at number 6.

A massive debt load led to significant restructuring, write-offs, and asset sales. However, the company has roared back with a laser focus on its highest-return properties and is one of the lowest cost producers.

Its all-in sustaining costs of US $765-815 per ounce is one of the lowest of the majors.

The company reduced its net debt by $1.5 billion in 2017, exceeding its target. Its debt has dropped from $14.1 billion in 2014, to $6.43 billion in 2017.

Furthermore, it expects to exit 2018 with debt below $5 billion.

Barrick’s primary focus is growing cash flow and is targeting to be cash flow positive at a gold price of US$1,000/oz. After years of declining reserves, the company finally returned to growth in 2017.

5) B2Gold Corp.

Price As Of May 8th 2018: $3.69
Ticker: BTO.TO
Sector: Mining
Industry: Gold
P/E: 63.62
EPS: $0.06
P/B: 2.33
Market Cap: $3.63 Billion
Dividend Yield: N/A
Click here to see their charts and opinions

B2Gold Corp is a gold producer with five operating mines scattered across the globe.

It has one in Mali, one in Namibia, one in the Philippines, two in Nicaragua, and a portfolio of other evaluation and exploration assets.

The company posted record production in 2017, exceeding the upper end of its guidance. A big catalyst for the company is that it’s flagship Fekola Mine achieved commercial production this past November, three months ahead of schedule and on budget.

Fekola was not simply last year’s good new story.

Operations are now in full swing and total gold production at the company is expected to jump 47% in 2018. The Fekola mine is a low cost producing mine and is a big part of the expected significant increases in free cash flow.

The company is well covered by analysts and all 16 rate the company a buy. Yep, you read that correctly.

Its unanimous, B2Gold is a ‘buy’. Analysts have an average price target of $5.32, a whopping 54% above today’s share price.

4) Goldcorp

Price As Of April 19th 2018: $17.25
Ticker: G.TO
Sector: Mining
Industry: Gold
P/E: 22.70
EPS: $0.76
P/B: 1.05
Market Cap: $14.99 Billion
Dividend Yield: 0.56%
Click here to see their charts and opinions

Goldcorp comes in at number four on our list of the best gold stocks to buy now.

Goldcorp is another major player who has been punished by the market.

It has endured many of the same struggles as its peers and has been focusing on operational efficiencies. Its turnaround efforts appear to bearing fruit.

In 2017, the company found approximately $200 million in operational efficiencies.

What does the future hold? Management has high expectations for the company. It expects to increase reserves and production by 20% through 2021 and along with it, reduce all-in sustaining costs by 20%.
If the company c

an achieve these targets, cash flow will skyrocket as will the company’s share price, which is sitting close to a five year low.

3) Agnico Eagle Mines Ltd.

Price As Of May 8th 2018: $55.35
Ticker: AEM.TO
Sector: Mining
Industry: Gold
P/E: 52.71
EPS: $1.05
P/B: 2.60
Market Cap: $12.73 Billion
Dividend Yield: 1.02%
Click here to see their charts and opinions

Agnico Eagle Mines is one of the best-managed gold companies in the world, and that is one of the reasons why it has made it on our list of the best Canadian gold stocks to buy for 2018.

In an industry plagued by high capital expenditures that can lead to insurmountable debt, Agnico’s debt to equity ratio is well below the industry average at 28%.

The company has consistently beat earnings expectations over the past year and is currently trading 25% below analysts’ estimates.

Agnico expects to grow production by 30% through 2020, which will drive increased cash flows. One of the most attractive aspects of its growth plans is that it expects to achieve this growth from assets they currently own.

Likewise, due to high cash flows, the company is aiming to achieve a self-funding model with no external financing required. The company is one of the more trustworthy companies having consistently exceeded production guidance since 2012.

It has posted returns above industry average for the past three, five, and ten years.

2) Detour Gold

Price As Of May 8th 2018: $10.33
Ticker: DGC.TO
Sector: Mining
Industry: Gold
P/E: 20.66
EPS: $0.50
P/B: 0.92
Market Cap: $1.81 Billion
Dividend Yield: N/A
Click here to see their charts and opinions

Detour Gold comes in at number 2 on our list of the best Canadian gold stocks.

Detour Gold is one of the smaller players on the list but is one of the most attractive investments in the sector.

Its flagship property, Detour Lake, has a long reserve life of 22 years as compared to the industry average of 10 years. This primary asset is located in Northern Ontario, which is one of, if not the safest mining jurisdiction in the world.

The company has been executing well and expects 2018 production to jump 12% at the mid-point of guidance.

Likewise, it has grown cash flows every quarter since the fourth quarter of 2015. Over the past two years, quarterly free cash flow has grown 520% to $258 million in the fourth quarter of 2017.

Analysts’ have been particularly bullish on Detour Gold with several upgrades in March. It has 17 analysts following the company, of which 13 have the company rated as a ‘buy’.

The median analyst price target is $20, which implies a 45% upside from today’s share price.

1)Franco Nevada Corp

Price As Of May 8th 2018: $96.05
Ticker: FNV.TO
Sector: Mining
Industry: Gold
P/E: 90.61
EPS: $1.06
P/B: 3.80
Market Cap: $17.85 Billion
Dividend Yield: 1.30%
Click here to see their charts and opinions

The number one gold stock in Canada for 2018 is Franco Nevada.

Franco Nevada Corp. is a streaming company with stakes in metals, and oil/gas properties.

Despite its recent foray into liquid gold, it’s still very much a gold streaming play and aims to have 80% of its revenues coming from precious metals.

Franco Nevada is one of the few gold companies that have rewarded investors despite a declining metal price. Over the past 5-years, the company’s share price has returned approximately 100% to shareholders as compared to the 41% loss in value suffered by the TSX Gold Index.

The greatest advantage to owning a streaming company is that it is not saddled with the high costs of capital expenditures and operational mining costs.

The company is also a Canadian dividend aristocrat having raised dividends for ten straight years. It is the only gold company to have kept its dividend growth streak alive after the price of gold crashed.

Reliability is key in the gold mining sector, and Franco Nevada is as reliable as it gets.

Now that you’ve seen the top Canadian gold stocks, are you ready to start investing in them?

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