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4 Gold Mining Stocks Likely to Tide Industry Headwinds
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The outlook for Zacks Mining - Gold industry remains challenging, as gold prices have retreated from their January record, with a stronger U.S. dollar and expectations of further interest rate hikes weighing on the precious metal. Miners continue to face rising costs and labor shortages. Longer-term challenges include resource depletion and declining production from mature mines, which point to a potential supply deficit.
Amid this uncertainty, Fury Gold Mines (FURY - Free Report) , Gold Royalty (GROY - Free Report) , Newmont Mining Corporation (NEM - Free Report) and B2Gold Corp. (BTG - Free Report) are well-poised for growth, backed by their strong balance sheets and growth initiatives.
About the Industry
The Zacks Mining - Gold industry mainly comprises companies engaged in extracting gold from mines. The mines may either be underground or open pits. Mining is a long and complex process, and requires significant financial resources. It involves exploration to evaluate a deposit's size; assessing ways to extract and process ore efficiently, safely and responsibly; and developing the mine before the actual mining process. It normally takes 10-20 years for a gold mine to produce material that can finally be refined. Players in the industry nowadays use a range of sophisticated techniques to extract gold and convert it into dore bars, an alloy of gold and silver, alongside other impurities. These are then sent for purification, after which gold is purchased as bars or coins, or used in jewelry or other purposes.
Major Trends Shaping the Future of the Mining - Gold Industry
Gold Retreats as Stronger Dollar and Hawkish Fed Pressure Prices: Gold prices reached a record $5,595 per ounce in late January, supported by a weaker U.S. dollar, heightened economic uncertainty and U.S.-Iran tensions. Prices have since retreated as oil prices climbed and expectations of further interest rate hikes increased. Gold is currently trading below $4,000 per ounce, pressured by a strengthening dollar following hotter-than-expected U.S. inflation data and increasingly hawkish comments from Federal Reserve officials. Markets now assign an approximately 91% probability to a rate hike next month, with further increases anticipated in January and potentially April. Gold has declined 7.7% so far this year, following a 66.5% surge in 2025.
Persistent Cost Inflation and Labor Constraints Challenge Miners: The industry continues to face a shortage of skilled workers, driving higher wages and adding to production costs. Expenses related to energy, water, materials also remain elevated. Since miners have limited control over gold prices, they are focusing on increasing production, strengthening operating cash flow and lowering unit net cash costs. They are also adopting alternative energy sources, including solar and wind power, to reduce fuel-price volatility and improve supply security. Companies are also stepping up cost-control initiatives and deploying digital technologies to improve operational efficiency, enhance productivity and optimize resource utilization.
Strong Demand to Support the Industry: According to the World Gold Council, global gold demand declined 1% year over year in the third quarter of 2026. However, cumulative demand for the first nine months reached 3,881 tons, nearly matching the full-year record of 3,884 tons set in 2025. Central bank purchases totaled 321 tons in the third quarter, exceeding recent average quarterly buying levels. Global gold ETFs also attracted 211 tons of inflows in the third quarter, reversing the outflows recorded in the second quarter. Jewelry demand declined 17% year over year as elevated gold prices weighed on consumer purchases. In India, jewelry demand was additionally affected by the shift in the festive season from the third quarter to the fourth quarter this year. In 2026, investment demand is projected to exceed 2025 levels by approximately 200 tons. Jewelry demand is likely to decline year over year, while technology-related demand is expected to remain stable. Meanwhile, full-year central bank purchases are anticipated to at least match 2025 levels.
Declining Supply Raises Long-Term Concerns: Depleting resources, declining output from mature mines and a limited pipeline of discoveries remain key challenges for the gold industry. With major discoveries becoming increasingly scarce and new mines requiring significant capital and carrying higher risks, miners are increasingly turning to acquisitions to replenish reserves. At the same time, demand for gold is expanding across investment, technology, healthcare and other applications. Gold's role as a safe-haven investment also supports demand during periods of financial and geopolitical uncertainty. A widening supply-demand imbalance could provide continued support to gold prices.
Zacks Industry Rank Indicates Dull Prospects
The group’s Zacks Industry Rank, basically the average of the Zacks Rank of all the member stocks, indicates bleak near-term prospects. The Zacks Mining - Gold Industry, which is a 43-stock group within the broader Zacks Basic Materials sector, currently carries a Zacks Industry Rank #164, which places it at the bottom 34% of 247 Zacks industries.
Our research shows that the top 50% of the Zacks-ranked industries outperform the bottom 50% by a factor of more than 2 to 1.
Before we present a few stocks that you may want to consider for your portfolio, let us take a look at the industry’s recent stock-market performance and valuation picture.
Industry Versus S&P 500 & Sector
The Mining-Gold Industry has underperformed the S&P 500 Index and the Basic Material sector in a year. The stocks in the industry have collectively gained 10.5% compared with the broader sector’s growth of 12.7%. The S&P 500 has risen 11.4% in the same time frame.
One-Year Price Performance
Industry's Current Valuation
On the basis of the trailing 12-month EV/EBITDA, a commonly used multiple for valuing gold-mining companies, we see that the industry is currently trading at 6.35X compared with the S&P 500’s 16.03X and the Basic Material sector’s trailing 12-month EV/EBITDA of 12.39X. This is shown in the charts below.
Enterprise Value/EBITDA (EV/EBITDA) TTM Ratio
Enterprise Value/EBITDA (EV/EBITDA) TTM Ratio
Over the last five years, the industry traded as high as 11.78X and as low as 5.14X, the median being 7.81X.
4 Mining-Gold Stocks to Watch
Fury Gold Mines: The company is advancing the Eau Claire gold project toward development through drilling and environmental, permitting and sustainability work. Average annual production is projected to be approximately 75.8k ounces of gold over an 11-year mine life. FURY recently disclosed additional assay results from its ongoing Phase 2 drill program for the Eau Claire Gold Project. The Phase 2 program comprises approximately 25,000 meters of diamond drilling designed to increase geological confidence within the current mineral resource estimate and support the conversion of Inferred Mineral Resources to higher-confidence resource categories. Fury has completed 21,857 meters under the program. An updated mineral resource estimate is expected for Eau Claire late this year or early in 2027, to be followed by the completion of a pre-feasibility study. The company also announced first assay results from its 2026 diamond drill program at the Committee Bay gold project located in the eastern Kitikmeot region of Nunavut. The 2026 drill program comprised 11 diamond drill holes totaling 4,219 meters, including five infill holes at the Three Bluffs deposit (Figure 1). Based in Toronto, Canada, Fury Gold Mines, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the acquisition and exploration of mineral properties in Canada. It explores for gold, silver, lithium, and rare earth element deposits. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for the company for fiscal 2026 is currently pegged at a loss of 4 cents per share. The estimate has, however, moved up from the loss of 5 cents projected 30 days ago. Fury Gold currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).
Gold Royalty: Gold Royalty continues to deliver strong operational and financial performance, reporting record production, earnings and cash flows from its diversified portfolio of long-life royalty and streaming assets across established mining jurisdictions. The company remains on track to meet its 2026 production guidance of 7,500-9,300 GEOs, having achieved 76% of the midpoint of its full-year target as of Sept. 30, 2026. Looking ahead, Gold Royalty expects significant free cash flow growth, supported by rising contributions from key assets, including Odyssey, Côté, Vareš, REN, South Railroad and Granite Creek, as well as the anticipated restart of Jerritt Canyon. These developments could strengthen cash generation and create opportunities for shareholder returns. Additionally, potential mine expansions at Odyssey, Borborema and Borden, along with resource growth driven by increased exploration spending across its portfolio of more than 260 royalties, provide further upside to the company's long-term production and cash flow outlook.
Vancouver, Canada-based Gold Royalty Corp. is a precious metals-focused royalty company and provides financing solutions to the metals and mining industry in the United States, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Canada, Brazil, and Mexico. It focuses on acquiring royalties, streams, or similar interests at varying stages of the mine life cycle to build a portfolio offering near, medium and longer-term returns for its investors. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for GROY’s earnings for fiscal 2026 has remained unchanged at 5 cents per share over the past 30 days. The estimate indicates year-over-year growth of 600%. The company currently carries a Zacks Rank of 2.
Price & Consensus: GROY
Newmont: The company’s gold and copper portfolio, strengthened by the Newcrest acquisition, supports its long-term investment case. Newmont continues to invest in growth projects in a calculated manner. Tanami Expansion 2 and Cadia Panel Caves in Australia remain central to its production outlook. The Tanami expansion is expected to add roughly 150,000-200,000 ounces of annual gold production and reduce operating costs by around 30%. Ahafo North, which achieved commercial production in 2025, continues to ramp up. Newmont expects higher production from Ahafo North, Tanami and several other sites in the fourth quarter of 2026. It also expects portfolio gold production to grow by a low- to mid-single-digit percentage in 2027.
Headquartered in Denver, CO, Newmont is one of the world's largest producers of gold, with several active mines in Nevada, Peru, Australia and Ghana. NEM has a trailing four-quarter earnings surprise of 20%, on average. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for NEM’s 2026 earnings has moved up 1.4% over the past 30 days and indicates year-over-year growth of 33.2%. The company has a long-term estimated earnings growth of 6%. Newmont currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).
Price & Consensus: NEM
B2Gold: The company will benefit from its ongoing strategy of maximizing profitable mine production, moving forward with its remaining development and exploration projects and evaluating additional exploration, development and production prospects. The Goose Mine achieved commercial production in October 2025. Completion of the first phase of crushing-circuit upgrades in October 2026 has increased throughput to approximately 3,200 tons per day, which the company expects to maintain until mid-2027. The second phase of upgrades is targeted to increase throughput to an average of 4,000 tons per day. Pre-stripping at Fekola Regional commenced in October. Ore deliveries to the Fekola processing plant are expected to begin in the first quarter of 2027, subject to finalization of the toll milling agreement. Following the planned ramp-up, Fekola Regional is expected to contribute more than 150,000 ounces annually from 2028 through the mid-2030s. At Otjikoto, development work continues at Antelope, with surface and underground infrastructure being established. Gramalote in Colombia remains another development opportunity, although permitting modifications and resettlement work are expected to continue into 2027.
Headquartered in Vancouver, Canada, B2Gold operates the Fekola Mine in Mali; the Masbate Mine in the Philippines; the Otjikoto Mine in Namibia; and the Goose Mine in Canada. It also owns a 100% interest in the Gramalote gold project in Colombia. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for the company’s fiscal 2026 earnings has moved up 18.8% over the past 60 days. The estimate indicates year-over-year growth of 23.91%. BTG currently carries a Zacks Rank of 3.
View the Zacks #1 Rank List
Image: Bigstock
4 Gold Mining Stocks Likely to Tide Industry Headwinds
The outlook for Zacks Mining - Gold industry remains challenging, as gold prices have retreated from their January record, with a stronger U.S. dollar and expectations of further interest rate hikes weighing on the precious metal. Miners continue to face rising costs and labor shortages. Longer-term challenges include resource depletion and declining production from mature mines, which point to a potential supply deficit.
Amid this uncertainty, Fury Gold Mines (FURY - Free Report) , Gold Royalty (GROY - Free Report) , Newmont Mining Corporation (NEM - Free Report) and B2Gold Corp. (BTG - Free Report) are well-poised for growth, backed by their strong balance sheets and growth initiatives.
About the Industry
The Zacks Mining - Gold industry mainly comprises companies engaged in extracting gold from mines. The mines may either be underground or open pits. Mining is a long and complex process, and requires significant financial resources. It involves exploration to evaluate a deposit's size; assessing ways to extract and process ore efficiently, safely and responsibly; and developing the mine before the actual mining process. It normally takes 10-20 years for a gold mine to produce material that can finally be refined. Players in the industry nowadays use a range of sophisticated techniques to extract gold and convert it into dore bars, an alloy of gold and silver, alongside other impurities. These are then sent for purification, after which gold is purchased as bars or coins, or used in jewelry or other purposes.
Major Trends Shaping the Future of the Mining - Gold Industry
Gold Retreats as Stronger Dollar and Hawkish Fed Pressure Prices: Gold prices reached a record $5,595 per ounce in late January, supported by a weaker U.S. dollar, heightened economic uncertainty and U.S.-Iran tensions. Prices have since retreated as oil prices climbed and expectations of further interest rate hikes increased. Gold is currently trading below $4,000 per ounce, pressured by a strengthening dollar following hotter-than-expected U.S. inflation data and increasingly hawkish comments from Federal Reserve officials. Markets now assign an approximately 91% probability to a rate hike next month, with further increases anticipated in January and potentially April. Gold has declined 7.7% so far this year, following a 66.5% surge in 2025.
Persistent Cost Inflation and Labor Constraints Challenge Miners: The industry continues to face a shortage of skilled workers, driving higher wages and adding to production costs. Expenses related to energy, water, materials also remain elevated. Since miners have limited control over gold prices, they are focusing on increasing production, strengthening operating cash flow and lowering unit net cash costs. They are also adopting alternative energy sources, including solar and wind power, to reduce fuel-price volatility and improve supply security. Companies are also stepping up cost-control initiatives and deploying digital technologies to improve operational efficiency, enhance productivity and optimize resource utilization.
Strong Demand to Support the Industry: According to the World Gold Council, global gold demand declined 1% year over year in the third quarter of 2026. However, cumulative demand for the first nine months reached 3,881 tons, nearly matching the full-year record of 3,884 tons set in 2025. Central bank purchases totaled 321 tons in the third quarter, exceeding recent average quarterly buying levels. Global gold ETFs also attracted 211 tons of inflows in the third quarter, reversing the outflows recorded in the second quarter. Jewelry demand declined 17% year over year as elevated gold prices weighed on consumer purchases. In India, jewelry demand was additionally affected by the shift in the festive season from the third quarter to the fourth quarter this year. In 2026, investment demand is projected to exceed 2025 levels by approximately 200 tons. Jewelry demand is likely to decline year over year, while technology-related demand is expected to remain stable. Meanwhile, full-year central bank purchases are anticipated to at least match 2025 levels.
Declining Supply Raises Long-Term Concerns: Depleting resources, declining output from mature mines and a limited pipeline of discoveries remain key challenges for the gold industry. With major discoveries becoming increasingly scarce and new mines requiring significant capital and carrying higher risks, miners are increasingly turning to acquisitions to replenish reserves. At the same time, demand for gold is expanding across investment, technology, healthcare and other applications. Gold's role as a safe-haven investment also supports demand during periods of financial and geopolitical uncertainty. A widening supply-demand imbalance could provide continued support to gold prices.
Zacks Industry Rank Indicates Dull Prospects
The group’s Zacks Industry Rank, basically the average of the Zacks Rank of all the member stocks, indicates bleak near-term prospects. The Zacks Mining - Gold Industry, which is a 43-stock group within the broader Zacks Basic Materials sector, currently carries a Zacks Industry Rank #164, which places it at the bottom 34% of 247 Zacks industries.
Our research shows that the top 50% of the Zacks-ranked industries outperform the bottom 50% by a factor of more than 2 to 1.
Before we present a few stocks that you may want to consider for your portfolio, let us take a look at the industry’s recent stock-market performance and valuation picture.
Industry Versus S&P 500 & Sector
The Mining-Gold Industry has underperformed the S&P 500 Index and the Basic Material sector in a year. The stocks in the industry have collectively gained 10.5% compared with the broader sector’s growth of 12.7%. The S&P 500 has risen 11.4% in the same time frame.
One-Year Price Performance
Industry's Current Valuation
On the basis of the trailing 12-month EV/EBITDA, a commonly used multiple for valuing gold-mining companies, we see that the industry is currently trading at 6.35X compared with the S&P 500’s 16.03X and the Basic Material sector’s trailing 12-month EV/EBITDA of 12.39X. This is shown in the charts below.
Enterprise Value/EBITDA (EV/EBITDA) TTM Ratio
Enterprise Value/EBITDA (EV/EBITDA) TTM Ratio
Over the last five years, the industry traded as high as 11.78X and as low as 5.14X, the median being 7.81X.
4 Mining-Gold Stocks to Watch
Fury Gold Mines: The company is advancing the Eau Claire gold project toward development through drilling and environmental, permitting and sustainability work. Average annual production is projected to be approximately 75.8k ounces of gold over an 11-year mine life. FURY recently disclosed additional assay results from its ongoing Phase 2 drill program for the Eau Claire Gold Project. The Phase 2 program comprises approximately 25,000 meters of diamond drilling designed to increase geological confidence within the current mineral resource estimate and support the conversion of Inferred Mineral Resources to higher-confidence resource categories. Fury has completed 21,857 meters under the program. An updated mineral resource estimate is expected for Eau Claire late this year or early in 2027, to be followed by the completion of a pre-feasibility study. The company also announced first assay results from its 2026 diamond drill program at the Committee Bay gold project located in the eastern Kitikmeot region of Nunavut. The 2026 drill program comprised 11 diamond drill holes totaling 4,219 meters, including five infill holes at the Three Bluffs deposit (Figure 1).
Based in Toronto, Canada, Fury Gold Mines, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the acquisition and exploration of mineral properties in Canada. It explores for gold, silver, lithium, and rare earth element deposits. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for the company for fiscal 2026 is currently pegged at a loss of 4 cents per share. The estimate has, however, moved up from the
loss of 5 cents projected 30 days ago. Fury Gold currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).
You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks (Strong Buy) here.
Price & Consensus: FURY
Gold Royalty: Gold Royalty continues to deliver strong operational and financial performance, reporting record production, earnings and cash flows from its diversified portfolio of long-life royalty and streaming assets across established mining jurisdictions. The company remains on track to meet its 2026 production guidance of 7,500-9,300 GEOs, having achieved 76% of the midpoint of its full-year target as of Sept. 30, 2026. Looking ahead, Gold Royalty expects significant free cash flow growth, supported by rising contributions from key assets, including Odyssey, Côté, Vareš, REN, South Railroad and Granite Creek, as well as the anticipated restart of Jerritt Canyon. These developments could strengthen cash generation and create opportunities for shareholder returns. Additionally, potential mine expansions at Odyssey, Borborema and Borden, along with resource growth driven by increased exploration spending across its portfolio of more than 260 royalties, provide further upside to the company's long-term production and cash flow outlook.
Vancouver, Canada-based Gold Royalty Corp. is a precious metals-focused royalty company and provides financing solutions to the metals and mining industry in the United States, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Canada, Brazil, and Mexico. It focuses on acquiring royalties, streams, or similar interests at varying stages of the mine life cycle to build a portfolio offering near, medium and longer-term returns for its investors. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for GROY’s earnings for fiscal 2026 has remained unchanged at 5 cents per share over the past 30 days. The estimate indicates year-over-year growth of 600%. The company currently carries a Zacks Rank of 2.
Price & Consensus: GROY
Newmont: The company’s gold and copper portfolio, strengthened by the Newcrest acquisition, supports its long-term investment case. Newmont continues to invest in growth projects in a calculated manner. Tanami Expansion 2 and Cadia Panel Caves in Australia remain central to its production outlook. The Tanami expansion is expected to add roughly 150,000-200,000 ounces of annual gold production and reduce operating costs by around 30%. Ahafo North, which achieved commercial production in 2025, continues to ramp up. Newmont expects higher production from Ahafo North, Tanami and several other sites in the fourth quarter of 2026. It also expects portfolio gold production to grow by a low- to mid-single-digit percentage in 2027.
Headquartered in Denver, CO, Newmont is one of the world's largest producers of gold, with several active mines in Nevada, Peru, Australia and Ghana. NEM has a trailing four-quarter earnings surprise of 20%, on average. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for NEM’s 2026 earnings has moved up 1.4% over the past 30 days and indicates year-over-year growth of 33.2%. The company has a long-term estimated earnings growth of 6%. Newmont currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).
Price & Consensus: NEM
B2Gold: The company will benefit from its ongoing strategy of maximizing profitable mine production, moving forward with its remaining development and exploration projects and evaluating additional exploration, development and production prospects. The Goose Mine achieved commercial production in October 2025. Completion of the first phase of crushing-circuit upgrades in October 2026 has increased throughput to approximately 3,200 tons per day, which the company expects to maintain until mid-2027. The second phase of upgrades is targeted to increase throughput to an average of 4,000 tons per day. Pre-stripping at Fekola Regional commenced in October. Ore deliveries to the Fekola processing plant are expected to begin in the first quarter of 2027, subject to finalization of the toll milling agreement. Following the planned ramp-up, Fekola Regional is expected to contribute more than 150,000 ounces annually from 2028 through the mid-2030s. At Otjikoto, development work continues at Antelope, with surface and underground infrastructure being established. Gramalote in Colombia remains another development opportunity, although permitting modifications and resettlement work are expected to continue into 2027.
Headquartered in Vancouver, Canada, B2Gold operates the Fekola Mine in Mali; the Masbate Mine in the Philippines; the Otjikoto Mine in Namibia; and the Goose Mine in Canada. It also owns a 100% interest in the Gramalote gold project in Colombia. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for the company’s fiscal 2026 earnings has moved up 18.8% over the past 60 days. The estimate indicates year-over-year growth of 23.91%. BTG currently carries a Zacks Rank of 3.
Price & Consensus: BTG