2026 Top Gold Stock Picks: Expert Reveals Most Undervalued Plays | Brent Cook

Summary

Brent Cook, founder and senior advisor at Exploration Insights, discusses gold market sentiment, M&A trends in mining, and why he is bullish on gold miners and copper. He names Talon Metals (TLO) as a top stock pick, citing its high-grade US nickel deposit, and explains how he evaluates exploration projects, management teams, and jurisdictional risks.

• Gold miner valuations have become very cheap after a 35% correction, with P/NAV falling from 1.6x to 0.7x.
• Brent advises general investors to buy a basket of major gold mining companies and copper and hold.
• Talon Metals (TLO) is highlighted as an exceptionally high-grade nickel-PGE deposit in Minnesota with permits, infrastructure, and a fallen share price.
• Copper is viewed as cheap on a 2-year outlook driven by AI build-out and a supply deficit, despite near-term frothiness.
• He prefers exploration-stage juniors that hold assets likely to be acquired by majors, focusing on geology first and team second.
• Key factors for site visits include management quality, local infrastructure, and community acceptance.
• M&A activity has been smart and accretive so far, and a pickup in dumb deals would historically signal a market top.
• Government attitudes toward permitting have generally improved in the US and Canada, but staffing gaps have slowed some processes.