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

Same yardstick, side by side (as of August 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: BTG 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 BTG 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 BTG 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

B2Gold Corp (BTG) is a Vancouver-based intermediate gold producer. Its established operations are the Fekola complex in Mali, the Masbate mine in the Philippines, and the Otjikoto mine in Namibia, and in 2025 it brought its Goose mine in Nunavut, Canada into production, reaching commercial production on October 2, 2025. The company makes money by mining and selling gold (with some silver byproduct), so its revenue and margins are driven by the volume of ounces produced and the prevailing gold price relative to its mining costs. In 2025 B2Gold produced roughly 980,000 ounces of gold and reported record annual revenue of over $3 billion.

Full BTG 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.
• BTG drivers: Goose mine ramp; Gold-price leverage.

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 BTG, b2Gold's results are highly cyclical and move with the gold price, which is volatile and outside the company's control, so margins and the share price can swing sharply.

Pick AG if you believe its drivers more; BTG 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 BTG guides.

AG. First Majestic posted record Q1 2026 revenue of about $476.7 million, up roughly 95% year over year, with net earnings near $128 million and EPS around $0.26 as silver and gold prices surged. The stock trades at a trailing P/E in the low 30s and a forward P/E near 18, reflecting expectations that elevated metal prices continue. The dividend yield is negligible (well under 1%), so the return case rests almost entirely on the metal price and production.

BTG. B2Gold's financials are commodity-driven: revenue, earnings, and valuation are dominated by the gold price and by how many ounces it produces relative to its costs. Record 2025 revenue and strong Q1 2026 cash flow reflected high gold prices, while 2026 guidance of lower production and elevated all-in sustaining costs reflects the transitional Goose ramp. Gold-producer multiples often look low in strong-price years because investors discount the cyclicality of commodity earnings.

Headline figures (approximate, Q1 2026): AG shows q1 2026 revenue ~$477M, q1 2026 net earnings ~$128M, q1 2026 eps ~$0.26, q1 2026 free cash flow ~$224M; BTG shows revenue (2025 full year) ~$3.0 billion (record annual revenue, over $3 billion), gold production (2025) ~980,000 ounces (Fekola, Masbate, Otjikoto ~926,000 plus Goose ~53,000), 2026 production guidance ~820,000 to 970,000 ounces, with Goose guided near ~250,000 ounces, all-in sustaining costs (q1 2026) ~$1,964 per ounce, with cash operating costs ~$1,005 per ounce.

AG and BTG 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 BTG exposure against your real portfolio. It is not an investment adviser.