Dennis da Silva, senior portfolio manager at Middlefield Limited, shares his outlook on Resource Stocks.

Dennis da Silva, Senior Portfolio Manager, Middlefield Limited

Focus: Resource Stocks

Top picks: Tamarack Valley, Sitka Gold, White Gold

MARKET OUTLOOK:

In 2025, gold equities are an asset class investors have started paying attention to.

Gold has more than doubled over the past three years, as mounting geopolitical and economic risks fueled relentless buying of safe haven assets. While gold equities had lagged for the first couple of years, they have finally started to reflect their strong underlying fundamentals.

The S&P/TSX Gold index is up 120 per cent year to date, its best year since 1993.

An analysis by the Economic Times shows that Central banks worldwide now hold more gold than U.S. Treasuries for the first time in nearly three decades, highlighting a sweeping shift in global reserve management driven by sanctions risks, debt concerns, and a search for diversification.

The last month has been eventful at a corporate level, with CEO changes at the world’s two largest gold producers Barrick and Newmont , the proposed friendly merger of Anglo American and Canada’s critical minerals champion Teck Resources, and the tragic mudslide at the world’s second largest copper mine, Freeport McMoran’s Grasberg, which has shut in 4 per cent of the world’s copper supply.

At this point, it appears that Grasberg may not return to full capacity until 2027, leading to a tighter copper market.

TOP PICKS:

Dennis da Silva’s Top Picks: Tamarack Valley, Sitka Gold & White Gold Dennis da Silva, senior portfolio manager at Middlefield Limited, shares his top stock picks to watch in the market.

Tamarack Valley (TVE TSX)

A Canadian intermediate oil producer that has been busy consolidating in key regions.

Large player in the Clearwater heavy oil (55 per cent of production), the hottest play in Canada.

2024 proved to be an inflection point with the company beating expectations for the last six quarters. Over the last year, it has grown corporate production by ~10 per cent while reducing its net debt and share count by 17 per cent and six per cent, respectively.

Under flat oil environment, looking for more moderate growth of three to five per cent compound annual growth rate over five years. The biggest drivers have been improving capital efficiencies, stronger netbacks, and success from the Clearwater heavy oil waterfloods. The strength of its plays is illustrated by its low breakeven point (including dividends), which is around US$42 per barrel.

Sitka Gold (SIG TSX)

A junior gold explorer with a large land package, encompassing a gold project in the Yukon. The region is still recovering from Victoria Gold’s Eagle Mine heap leach containment failure in mid-2024 and subsequent bankruptcy.

The company is looking to significantly add to its initial 2.8 million ounce resource through a large drilling program in 2025. The combination of new discoveries and going deeper at existing deposit should turn it into a five million plus ounce project. Could become another Snowline Gold, which is an almost nine million ounce deposit. The valuation suggests the market is looking for more than five million ounces and potentially higher grades. This is a multi-deposit project with district scale potential and is well financed with over $15 million in the treasury.

White Gold (WGO TSX)

A junior gold exploration company with a three million ounce resource in the Yukon.

A recent IPO (Fuerte Gold) acquired a similar sized deposit from Newmont to the south, and it is trading at three times White Gold’s valuation. Interesting new neighbour with major shareholders such as Newmont, Agnico Eagle and Pierre Lassonde.

Agnico is also a 19.9 per cent shareholder of White Gold. The timing could not be better because its land base has been under drilled so the better cost of capital and increased investor interest in the Yukon will allow for a materially larger drill program with its new VP, Exploration. The VP, Exploration was part of the team that discovered the Great Bear deposit that Kinross bought for $1.8 billion in 2022. Well cashed with over $20 million and insiders own over 15 per cent of stock so well aligned.

DISCLOSUREPERSONALFAMILYPORTFOLIO/FUNDTVE TSXNNYSIG TSXNNYWGO TSXNNY

PAST PICKS: JUNE 4, 2025

Dennis da Silva’s Past Picks: Iamgold, Spartan Delta & Troilus Gold Dennis da Silva, senior portfolio manager at Middlefield Limited, discusses his past stock picks and how they’re doing in the market today.

Iamgold (IAG TSX)

Then: $10.17

Now: $18.32

Return: 80%

Total Return: 80%

Spartan Delta (SDE TSX)

Then: $3.35

Now: $5.40

Return: 61%

Total Return: 61%

Troilus Gold (TLG TSX)

Then: $0.64

Now: $1.31

Return: 105%

Total Return: 105%

Total Return Average: 82%

DISCLOSUREPERSONALFAMILYPORTFOLIO/FUNDIAG TSXNNYSDE TSXNNYTLG TSXNNY