Top 5 Gold Companies To Watch In Right Now

Many investors think of Canada as the land of mining stocks, and not without good reason.

It's resource-rich and home to a legion of mining firms that produce everything from gold and silver to iron ore. Canada ranks among the world's top five producers of 14 mineral commodities and is the world leader in the production of potash and uranium.

Of course, as a long-time tech investor I've followed many of these mining firms for a very simple reason. Materials like gold, silver, and rare earths touch a wide swath of tech products, from advanced defense systems to web-enabled autos, smartphones, and tablets.

Here's the thing. Resource firms (along with Silicon Valley to the south) greatly overshadow Canada's burgeoning tech scene. Yet the nation is home to thousands of companies in computing, e-commerce, information technology, and medical devices.

The trade group, the Information Technology Association of Canada, says its industry alone counts some 33,300 companies. Together, they generate a combined $155 billion in annual sales.

Top Heal Care Companies To Invest In Right Now: CME Group Inc.(CME)

CME Group Inc. operates the CME, CBOT, NYMEX, and COMEX regulatory exchanges worldwide. The company provides a range of products available across various asset classes, including futures and options on interest rates, equity indexes, energy, agricultural commodities, metals, foreign exchange, weather, and real estate. It offers various products that provide a means of hedging, speculation, and asset allocation relating to the risks associated with interest rate sensitive instruments, equity ownership, changes in the value of foreign currency, credit risk, and changes in the prices of commodities. CME Group owns and operates clearing house, CME Clearing, which provides clearing and settlement services for exchange-traded contracts and counter derivatives transactions; and also engages in real estate operations. Its primary trade execution facilities consist of its CME Globex electronic trading platform and open outcry trading floors, as well as privately negotiated transact ions that are cleared and settled through its clearing house. In addition, the company offers market data services comprising live quotes, delayed quotes, market reports, and historical data services, as well as involves in index services business. CME Group?s customer base includes professional traders, financial institutions, institutional and individual investors, corporations, manufacturers, producers, and governments. It has strategic partnerships with BM&FBOVESPA S.A., Bursa Malaysia Derivatives, Singapore Exchange Limited, Green Exchange, Dubai Mercantile Exchange, Johannesburg Stock Exchange, and Bolsa Mexicana de Valores, S.A.B. de C.V., as well as joint venture agreement with Dow Jones & Company. The company was formerly known as Chicago Mercantile Exchange Holdings Inc. and changed its name to CME Group Inc. in July 2007. CME Group was founded in 1898 and is headquartered in Chicago, Illinois.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Jeff Reeves]

  Options traders and commodity junkies should recognize CME Group (CME) as the Chicago Mercantile Exchange, a financial entity that operates a host of futures exchanges as well as providing its own exchange-traded products and derivatives.

• [By Matthew Leising]

  The study, commissioned by CME Group Inc. (CME), the Futures Industry Association, the Institute for Financial Markets and the National Futures Association, surveyed private insurance companies to gauge their interest in providing protection to customers if their futures broker goes bankrupt, according to a statement released today.

Top 5 Gold Companies To Watch In Right Now: Golden Star Resources Ltd(GSS)

Golden Star Resources Ltd., a gold mining and exploration company, through its subsidiaries, engages in the acquisition, exploration, development, and production of gold properties. It owns and operates the Bogoso/Prestea gold mining and processing operation that covers approximately 40 kilometers of strike along the southwest-trending Ashanti gold district in western Ghana; and the Wassa open-pit gold mine located to the east of Bogoso/Prestea in southwest Ghana. The company also has an 81% interest in the Prestea underground gold mine located in Ghana. In addition, it holds interests in various gold exploration projects in Ghana, Sierra Leone, Burkina Faso, Niger, and Cote d?Ivoire, as well as holds and manages exploration properties in Brazil in South America. The company was founded in 1984 and is based in Littleton, Colorado.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Rich Duprey]

  Clash of the titans
  When bears are raging on the gold bullion market, it's not surprising to see gold stocks getting mauled as well. Golden Star Resources (NYSEMKT: GSS  ) was the biggest loser in the sector, losing a quarter of its market cap on no company-specific news, though a report last Friday indicated that a large number of hedge funds had recently dumped their positions in the mid-tier miner. Yet it wasn't all that much better among the majors, either, as Barrick Gold (NYSE: ABX  ) fell almost 13% and Kinross Gold (NYSE: KGC  ) was down 14%.

• [By Patricio Kehoe] ating price of the commodity, along with the geopolitical risks involved in mining in African nations such as Ghana, are just two of the obstacles the firm is facing. In addition, as one of the smallest gold mining firms in the industry, with a market cap of just $122 million, Golden Star has had a very difficult time financing its latest expansion projects. With share prices tumbling towards all-time lows, gurus such as Steven Cohen, Chuck Royce and Arnold Schneider have already sold out their positions in the troubled firm.

  Why Have Gurus Lost Faith in Golden Star?

  Despite aggressive expansion over the past decade, the Toronto-based gold mining firm has not been able to take advantage of its increased production output. Gold prices might have exploded over a ten-year period, yet the recent six-month decline has put a huge strain on Golden Star. The expedited maturation of its mines is particularly troubling, since the accelerated extraction rates, which allowed for short-term profits, are now falling considerably. The impact of the company�� excessive overproduction on profits and growth is clear: decreasing gold reserves mean less production, and thus reduced revenue for the gold miner. When the decline in metal prices are taken into account, the outlook is even more grim.

  In addition to overexpansion at the wrong time, Golden Star�� position has weakened due to its comparably less efficient operations. Unlike industry peers, such as IamGold Corp. (IAG) or Gold Fields Ltd. (GFI), the majority of the Toronto-based miner�� assets contain refractory ore, which is far more expensive to extract than non refractory ore. And, in an attempt to switch production to the lower cost gold ore, and thus increase margins, Golden Star has depleted its mines��non refractory ore. With low reserves and mounting cash costs, the firm inevitably turned to new acquisitions.

  Overpriced Acquisitions and Geopolitical Risk

  The purchase

• [By Patricio Kehoe] some future and gave several reasons for my bearish stance towards the stock. A small market, high geopolitical risk in some of the countries the firm operates, along with overexpansion in times of fluctuating gold prices gave tune to the massive shedding of shares by investment gurus. Five months have past since I last considered Golden Star�� potential, and everything indicates the situation has not changed.

  Guru Activity Shows a Clear Tendency

  Steven Cohen (Trades, Portfolio), Chuck Royce (Trades, Portfolio) and Arnold Schneider (Trades, Portfolio), had already sold their entire holdings in the company by October 2013, indicating they had little faith in the gold miner�� recovery. By the end of the year, Jim Simons' (Trades, Portfolio) Renaissance Technologies took a similar decision, reducing its stake in the firm by 32%. This tendency towards the sale of Golden Star stock was duly noted by investors and analysts alike, and concurs with the company�� poor performance.

  A Look at the Numbers

  In an industry plagued by fluctuating metal prices, operating with lofty margins can be quite helpful. Yet Golden Star cannot afford such luxuries. With an operating margin of 0.1% and a net margin of -56.8% the firm is in a tight spot, especially when compared to the industry average. Unlike its industry peers��median, which are of 2.26% and -0.09%, respectively, the Toronto-based gold miner is struggling to generate decent cash flow levels. Further metrics depict a even worse situation for shareholders: return on equity is currently at -370% and revenue growth is estimated to reach a poor 2.5%. Purchasing overpriced assets, relative to current gold prices, is surely one of the reasons for such grim figures, as financial losses have taken their toll on Golden Star.

  The announcement of its 2013 full year, and fourth quarter earnings only helped to add to shareholders��concerns. A 15% decline in revenue was expected by those

• [By Sean Williams]

  Golden Star Resources (NYSEMKT: GSS  )
  It's simple physics: The bigger they are, the harder they fall. When gold prices nosedived earlier this week, gold miners with historically higher operating costs took the brunt of the hit. For the most part, that meant that development-stage miners, and those operating in Africa, where labor and political costs make cost-effective mining a challenge, took it on the chin. Possibly no stock was hammered more than Golden Star Resources, a gold miner in Ghana, which lost about one-quarter of its value on Monday alone.

Top 5 Gold Companies To Watch In Right Now: Agnico-Eagle Mines Limited(AEM)

Agnico-Eagle Mines Limited, through its subsidiaries, engages in the exploration, development, and production of mineral properties in Canada, Finland, and Mexico. The company primarily explores for gold, as well as silver, copper, zinc, and lead. Its flagship property includes the LaRonde mine located in the southern portion of the Abitibi volcanic belt, Canada. The company was founded in 1953 and is based in Toronto, Canada.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Hebba Investments]

  Even with rising Q2 costs, GG still has lower true all-in costs than many of its larger competitors' Q1FY13 costs. Compared to Q1FY13 numbers of competitors such as Yamana Gold (AUY) (costs just over $1300), Kinross Gold (KGC) (costs above $1350), Silvercrest Mines (SVLC) (costs below $1100), Newmont Gold (NEM) (costs around $1300) Agnico-Eagle (AEM) (costs around $1400) and Barrick Gold (ABX) (costs around $1200).

• [By Louis Navellier]

  Agnico-Eagle Mines (AEM) runs mineral properties in Canada, Finland and Mexico. Gold is AEM�� primary focus but it also looks for and mines silver, copper, zinc and lead.

• [By Ben Levisohn]

  Gold miners are getting a boost today from solid earnings from the likes of Barrick Gold (ABX), Goldcorp (GG) and Agnico Eagle Mines (AEM). The exception: Kinross Gold (KGC), which missed earnings forecasts and cut its reserves.

Top 5 Gold Companies To Watch In Right Now: Australian Dollar(AU)

AngloGold Ashanti Limited primarily engages in the exploration and production of gold. It also produces silver, uranium oxide, and sulfuric acid. The company conducts gold-mining operations in South Africa; continental Africa, including Ghana, Guinea, Mali, Namibia, and Tanzania; Australia; and the Americas, which include Argentina, Brazil, and the United States. It also has mining or exploration operations in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Guinea, and Colombia. As of December 31, 2010, the company had proved and probable gold reserves of 71.2 million ounces. The company has a strategic alliance with Thani Dubai Mining Limited to explore, develop, and operate mines across the Middle East and parts of North Africa. AngloGold Ashanti Limited, formerly known as Vaal Reefs Exploration and Mining Company Limited, was founded in 1944 and is headquartered in Johannesburg, South Africa.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Dan Caplinger]

  One way Yamana has kept its competitive cost advantage is through extensive sales of base-metal byproducts like copper and zinc, as both it and fellow low-cost rival Goldcorp (NYSE: GG  ) benefit from utilizing those secondary metals to offset the cost of their gold production. Peers Gold Fields (NYSE: GFI  ) and AngloGold Ashanti (NYSE: AU  ) , on the other hand, face much higher costs in part because of their exposure to South Africa and its unstable labor market.

• [By Patricio Kehoe] stion arises: Why is First Eagle bullish regarding such a company? The answer might lie in the huge discount at which the third-largest gold producer by output is trading, along with a certain degree of long-term optimism.

  Huge Holdings Point to Long-Term Commitment

  Since First Eagle recently increased its stake in Anglogold by more than 20%, bringing his total holding to over 32.5 million shares, I believe we are looking at a long-term investment. I am keen on pointing this out, since the stock is currently performing very poorly, and has already lost around 275% of its value year to date. Above average production costs and plummeting gold prices have put a huge deal of pressure on the gold miner, leading to very poor results. In addition, since many of its operations are in geopolitically risky countries such as Mali and the Democratic Republic of Congo, shareholders have been shedding this stock in large volumes.

  Although Anglogold had a very rough year, and will continue to face elevated cash costs and reduced margins going into 2014, there are some positive signals looking forward. One of the most promising features, are the firm�� operations in South America and Australia, which are enjoying solid organic growth. Although investors will have to wait some years for assets in these regions to reach full production, large profits should be achieved in the long-term. In other words, First Eagle surely has its eyes set on the company�� new projects, and their future growth potential.

  Projected Growth and Low Price

  Another attractive feature investors must keep in mind is a stock�� growth potential. When looking at Anglogold, this becomes especially relevant, as a comparison to Barrick Gold Corp (ABX) will demonstrate. Anglogold currently offers 13.6% returns on invested capital, compared to Barrick�� -2.8%, and has an EBITDA growth rate of 465.7%, the highest in the industry. Thus, whereas the Canadian miner has a negative EPS