AG vs B: Which Is the Better Buy in 2026?

Same yardstick, side by side (as of October 2026). Valuation lined up like this is most meaningful for two names in the same corner of the market, which these are. Figures are approximate; verify before investing.

Reading it: B is the cheaper of the two on forward earnings, but cheaper is not the same as better. Pair the valuation with growth (how far the forward P/E sits below the trailing P/E) and risk (beta) before you decide.

The metrics above tell you which is the marginally better business. The bigger risk for most people is not picking the slightly worse stock, it is over-concentrating. AG and B share themes, so owning both, or adding either to what you already hold, can quietly push a large share of your portfolio into one bet.

This is the part a generic comparison page cannot answer, because it depends on what you own. Connect your brokerage and Walnut shows your real, combined AG and B exposure, flags overlap with your existing positions, and tells you if adding one would tip you past a concentration you are comfortable with, read-only by default, with your login staying at your broker. Walnut is not an investment adviser.

First Majestic Silver Corp. (NYSE: AG) is a precious-metals producer that operates four underground mines in Mexico: San Dimas in Durango, Santa Elena in Sonora, La Encantada in Coahuila, and Cerro Los Gatos in Chihuahua. The company mines silver and gold as its primary products, along with byproduct zinc, lead, and copper. In January 2025 First Majestic completed its roughly $1.05 billion all-stock acquisition of Gatos Silver, adding a 70% interest in the Los Gatos joint venture and lifting 2025 silver production to a record 15.4 million ounces, up about 84% from the prior year.

Full AG guide

Barrick Mining Corporation (B) is one of the world's largest gold producers and, increasingly, a major copper producer. It mines and sells gold and copper from a portfolio of large, long-life operations spread across the Americas, Africa, and the Middle East, including Nevada Gold Mines (a joint venture in the United States), Pueblo Viejo in the Dominican Republic, Kibali in the Democratic Republic of Congo, North Mara in Tanzania, and the Loulo-Gounkoto complex in Mali. The company changed its name from Barrick Gold Corporation to Barrick Mining Corporation and switched its NYSE ticker from GOLD to B in May 2025, as part of its push to grow copper alongside gold. Its growth pipeline includes the Fourmile gold project in Nevada and the large Reko Diq copper-gold project in Pakistan. As a commodity producer, Barrick's revenue and profits swing with gold and copper prices, which it does not control. Its shares also trade on the Toronto Stock Exchange under ABX. Headquartered in Toronto, Barrick is widely viewed as a large-cap way to gain exposure to gold as a store of value, with growing copper leverage to electrification.

Full B guide

Both fit overlapping themes, but they are not interchangeable. The useful comparison is which set of drivers and risks you want exposure to.

• AG drivers: Silver and gold price leverage; Los Gatos integration and scale.
• B drivers: Large-cap gold exposure; Growing copper and the energy transition.

A faster-growing, richer-valued name usually swings harder, so it suits a longer horizon and a higher tolerance for volatility; a steadier, more cash-generative business suits a more conservative or income-minded investor. The honest test is which set of risks you could hold through a drawdown: The single largest risk is the silver price itself: a sustained decline would compress margins far faster than the metal falls because mining costs are largely fixed. For B, barrick is a commodity producer, so its revenue and profits swing sharply with gold and copper prices, which it does not control and which can fall in stronger-growth or higher-real-rate environments; gold's slide to a two-month low in early October 2026 on expectations of further Federal Reserve tightening is a recent example, and the stock fell about 6% over the following month.

Growth-minded investors who believe the theme has years to run tend to accept the richer multiple for more upside; value-minded investors lean toward the cheaper forward earnings and steadier profile. Pick AG if you believe its drivers more; B if you believe its. Many investors hold both, but since they share themes, that is a concentrated bet, not diversification. Decide deliberately and check overlap. For the full detail, see the AG and B guides.

AG. First Majestic trades at about 23 times trailing earnings and 16.6 times forward estimates, a multiple that assumes metal prices stay high. Analysts expect about $0.93 of EPS for 2026 and $0.97 for 2027 on revenue of roughly $2.35 billion and $2.6 billion, and about $0.20 per share for the third quarter, which reports November 5. The dividend yield is negligible, so the return case rests almost entirely on the metal price, production recovery, and the outcome of the Mexican tax settlement.

B. Barrick's valuation is inherently cyclical because earnings move with gold and copper prices the company does not control. At about 10.5 times trailing and 9.3 times forward earnings, and under 6 times EV/EBITDA, the stock prices in some doubt that 2026's metal prices will last, which is typical near strong points in the metals cycle. Consensus expects 2026 EPS of about $3.63 on about $21.5 billion of revenue and 2027 EPS of about $4.37. Q3 2026 results are due November 9, 2026. Figures are approximate and move sharply with commodity prices; verify current numbers before relying on them.

Headline figures (approximate, October 2026): AG shows revenue (ttm) ~$1.64B, up ~57% year over year in the latest quarter, net income (ttm) ~$348M (profit margin ~21%), eps ~$0.70 trailing; Q2 2026 $0.21 vs ~$0.25 expected, free cash flow (ttm) ~$775M; B shows revenue (ttm) ~$20.7 billion (latest quarter up ~44% YoY; FY2025 ~$17 billion), net income (ttm) ~$6.5 billion (~32% net margin), eps (ttm / q2 2026) ~$3.87 / $0.82 (in line with estimates), p/e (trailing / forward) ~10.5x / ~9.3x.

AG and B are related but distinct: same themes, different businesses and risks. Neither wins in the abstract; the right pick is whichever thesis you actually believe, sized so you are not over-concentrated in one theme. Walnut can show your combined AG and B exposure against your real portfolio. It is not an investment adviser.