Top 5 Gold Companies To Buy Right Now

Many investors think commodities are too risky. It makes sense when you look at the history...

Before the 2008 recession, oil was nearing $150 a barrel. Then it fell to the rock-bottom price of $35. Copper approached $1.20 per pound from a high of $4 six months earlier. Even gold -- supposedly a "safe haven" that investors could turn to in tumultuous times -- fell, to $750 per ounce from nearly $1,000 two months prior.

People thought they were safe by diversifying into commodities... But in a recession as deep and wide-ranging as 2008 was, everything went down. Especially commodities.

But to think commodities are too risky to invest in is a major mistake. Don't get me wrong, commodities -- and the companies that dig them up or process them -- are still sensitive to boom-and-bust cycles.

Look at the peaks and valleys you see in the chart below:

Best Valued Stocks To Invest In Right Now: Renaissance Oil Corp (ROE)

Renaissance Oil Corp, formerly San Antonio Ventures Inc., is developing a diversified shale and mature fields portfolio for development in Mexico and Spain. The Company is partnered with Grupo SAMCA, a diverse industrial with operations in energy, mining, industrial minerals, agriculture, environmental and various other business lines in Spain. Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Canadian Value]

  In our opinion, the biggest drawback to using multiples is that this method does not explicitly consider whether the fundamental drivers of business value embedded in the multiple are reasonable. For example, the formula below tells us that a company�� forward P/E ratio is a function of its cost of equity, return on equity (ROE), reinvestment ratio and payout ratio:

• [By Fast Weekly]

  One of my favorite metrics is return on equity (ROE). I want to be sure that the companies I own generate a high rate of return on my equity ownership in the company. You can see the past 10 years of ROE for Unilever Plc.

• [By Michael Robinson]

  Separate the signal from the noise: To create real wealth, you have to ignore Wall Street's hype machine and focus on firms with excellent fundamentals. And Jazz certainly has a great foundation. The company has operating margins of 41% and a return on stockholders' equity (ROE) of 31%.

Top 5 Gold Companies To Buy Right Now: Pershing Gold Corp (PGLC)

Pershing Gold Corporation, incorporated on August 2, 2007, is a gold and precious metals exploration company. The Company is pursuing exploration and development opportunities primarily in Nevada. It is focused on exploration at its Relief Canyon properties in Pershing County in northwestern Nevada. None of the Company�� properties contain proven and probable reserves, and all of its activities on all of its properties are exploratory in nature. The Company seeks properties with known mineralization that are in an advanced stage of exploration and have previously undergone some drilling but are under-explored. It is focused on exploration of the Relief Canyon properties, recommissioning the Relief Canyon gold processing facility and, if economically feasible, commencing mining at the Relief Canyon Mine.

Relief Canyon Mine Property

The Company�� Relief Canyon properties totals approximately 25,000 acres and consists of approximately 940 owned unpatented mining claims, 120 owned millsite claims, 170 leased unpatented mining claims, and leased and subleased private lands. The Company drilled 44 holes for approximately 28,500 feet in 2013. This drilling was on land adjacent to the current deposit and focused on extending and upgrading the existing deposit. In January 2013 the Company reported 32,541,000 tons of mineralized material at an average grade of 0.017 ounces of gold per ton and a cut-off grade of 0.0046 ounces of gold per ton.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By ValueInvestor7]

  I listen to investing advice from self-made billionaire investors, and I try to ignore advice from everyone else. I suspect readers on this website will appreciate this, where thankfully the Focus is still Gurus. To this end, I bring you the instructive story of Pershing Gold Corp (PGLC) and Levon Resources (TSE: LVN) (LVNVF).

Top 5 Gold Companies To Buy Right Now: NEW GOLD INC.(NGD)

New Gold Inc. engages in the acquisition, exploration, extraction, processing, and reclamation of mineral properties. The company primarily explore for gold, silver, and copper deposits. Its operating properties include the Mesquite gold mine in the United States; the Cerro San Pedro gold-silver mine in Mexico; and the Peak gold-copper mine in Australia. The company also has development projects, including the New Afton gold, silver, and copper project in Canada; and a 30% interest in the El Morro copper-gold project in Chile. The company was formerly known as DRC Resources Corporation and changed its name to New Gold Inc. in June 2005. New Gold Inc. was founded in 1980 and is headquartered in Vancouver, Canada.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Ben Levisohn]

  Even bad news has failed to dent the rise in gold stocks today. NewGold (NGD), for instance, has gained 1.8% to $7.49 despite the fact that the wall of one of its mines collapsed. The Wall Street Journal has the details:

• [By MONEYMORNING]

  New Gold Inc. (NSYEMKT: NGD) completed its takeover of Rainy River Resources back in October. New Gold got 4 million ounces in a good jurisdiction (Ontario) and paid less than book value.

Top 5 Gold Companies To Buy 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 Brianna Valleskey]

  The result is that gold producers are not a particularly exciting part of markets in South Africa anymore, Theron said. Most of the large gold companies, like AngloGold Ashanti Limited (NYSE: AU) and Gold Fields Limited (NYSE: GFI), have internationalized their operations, he said, but still have a footprint in South Africa.

• [By Daniel Putnam]

  First, and most important, earnings estimates are stabilizing. In the past sixty days, 2013 estimates for the major gold miners have begun to tick up. In most cases, the increase is very modest. For instance, Goldcorp‘s (GG) EPS estimates have climbed from $0.91 to $0.95, while Barrick Gold‘s (ABX) have inched up from $2.57 to $2.64. Newmont Mining (NEM), Anglogold Ashanti (AU), and Gold Fields Ltd. (GFI) have shown similar gains. This positive rate of change marks a significant departure from the steady stream of bad news investors have had to endure in recent years.

• [By Dan Caplinger]

  But even bigger damage came from gold-mining stocks. AngloGold Ashanti (NYSE: AU  ) has lost almost 60% of its value in 2013, with the drop in gold prices having an outsized impact on the gold miner's prospects. AngloGold has also suffered from investors moving away from emerging markets like South Africa in favor of U.S. stocks, as fears of the Federal Reserve's exit from its quantitative easing program have reduced overall risk tolerance among many investors.

• [By Mark Hulbert]

  If you prefer the shares of individual gold-mining companies, Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold (FCX) �is currently the one most recommended by the Hulbert Financial Digest-monitored advisers who have beaten the S&P 500 over the past 15 years. Also popular are Agnico Eagle Mines (AEM) , Barrick Gold (ABX) , AngloGold Ashanti (AU) �and Newmont Mining (NEM) .