EXK vs PAAS: How Endeavour Silver and Pan American Silver Compare (2026)
Short answer
EXK (Endeavour Silver) and PAAS (Pan American Silver) are often compared because they share investment themes, but they are different businesses. Endeavour Silver Corp (EXK) is a Vancouver-based mid-tier precious-metals mining company focused primarily on silver, with meaningful gold byproduct. Pan American Silver Corp (PAAS) is a Vancouver-based precious-metals mining company and one of the largest primary silver producers in the world, with significant gold output alongside the silver. Neither is universally better: pick by which thesis you are expressing and what you already own. This is descriptive, not a recommendation.
What does Endeavour Silver (EXK) do?
Endeavour Silver Corp (EXK) is a Vancouver-based mid-tier precious-metals mining company focused primarily on silver, with meaningful gold byproduct. It makes money by extracting ore from its underground mines, processing it into silver and gold, and selling that metal at prevailing market prices, so its revenue and margins are driven by how many ounces it produces relative to its mining costs and by where the silver and gold price sit. Its core producing assets are the Guanacevi mine in Durango, Mexico, the newly commissioned Terronera mine in Jalisco, Mexico, and the Kolpa mine in Huancavelica, Peru, which it acquired in 2025. In 2025 the company produced about 11.2 million silver-equivalent ounces and reported record annual revenue of $467.5 million.
What does Pan American Silver (PAAS) do?
Pan American Silver Corp (PAAS) is a Vancouver-based precious-metals mining company and one of the largest primary silver producers in the world, with significant gold output alongside the silver. It operates a portfolio of mines spread across the Americas, including Mexico, Peru, Bolivia, Argentina, Canada, Brazil, and Chile. The company makes money by mining and selling silver and gold (plus byproducts such as zinc, lead, and copper at some operations), so its revenue and margins are driven by how many ounces it produces relative to its mining costs and the prevailing silver and gold prices. In 2025 Pan American produced roughly 22.8 million ounces of silver and about 742,000 ounces of gold and reported record annual revenue of around $3.6 billion.
EXK vs PAAS: how do they differ?
Both fit overlapping themes, but they are not interchangeable. Endeavour Silver is best understood through its own drivers, and Pan American Silver through its. The useful comparison is which set of drivers and risks you want exposure to.
- EXK drivers: Terronera ramp-up; Silver-price leverage.
- PAAS drivers: Silver-price leverage; MAG Silver and Juanicipio.
EXK vs PAAS: how they make money and what they cost
EXK. A silver producer's numbers are commodity-driven: revenue, earnings, and valuation are dominated by the silver price (plus gold byproduct) and by how many ounces the company produces relative to its costs. All-in sustaining cost (AISC) per ounce is the key margin gauge, and it spiked at Terronera during startup before management guided it down for 2026 as the mine ramps. Because metal prices are cyclical and volatile, a silver miner's profits and share price can swing far more than the underlying metal, and headline figures like a net loss can be distorted by non-cash items such as derivative revaluations rather than the underlying mining business.
PAAS. Pan American's financials are commodity-driven: revenue, earnings, and valuation are dominated by silver and gold prices and by how many ounces it produces relative to its costs. Because it is a primary silver producer with byproduct gold and base metals, it offers operating leverage to the silver price in particular, so earnings can rise or fall faster than the metal itself. Precious-metals producer multiples often look elevated or depressed at different points in the cycle, so reading PAAS means weighing production growth, all-in sustaining costs, and the metal-price environment together rather than a single multiple.
Headline figures (approximate, FY2025 results (reported early 2026) and 2026 guidance): EXK shows silver-equivalent production (2025) ~11.2 million ounces, up ~48% year over year, revenue (2025 full year) ~$467.5 million, a record, up ~115% over 2024, net income (2025) net loss of ~$119.1 million, driven largely by ~$126 million of derivative losses and higher finance costs; PAAS shows silver production (2025) ~22.8 million ounces attributable, exceeding annual guidance, gold production (2025) ~742,000 ounces attributable, within guidance, revenue (2025 full year) ~$3.6 billion (record), with net earnings around $980 million. A cheaper-looking multiple is not automatically the better buy: a richer valuation can be justified by faster growth, and a lower one can reflect real risk. Weigh the multiple against how fast each business is actually compounding.
Which fits which kind of investor
Both share a theme, but they suit different temperaments. Endeavour Silver's case leans on terronera ramp-up, and Pan American Silver's on silver-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: Endeavour Silver's results are highly cyclical and move with the silver price, which is volatile and outside the company's control, so margins and the share price can swing sharply, and gold byproduct prices add another moving part. For PAAS, pan American's results are highly cyclical and move with silver and gold prices, which are volatile and outside the company's control, so margins and the share price can swing sharply.
EXK or PAAS: which should you pick?
The bottom line: EXK vs PAAS
EXK and PAAS 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 EXK and PAAS exposure against your real portfolio. It is not an investment adviser.
Build a basket around EXK with Walnut
Use Endeavour Silver as one constituent in a thematic basket Walnut's AI helps you assemble. Describe a thesis you believe in, the AI proposes the holdings and weights, and you approve before any broker order.
FAQ
What is the difference between EXK and PAAS?
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Endeavour Silver Corp (EXK) is a Vancouver-based mid-tier precious-metals mining company focused primarily on silver, with meaningful gold byproduct. Pan American Silver Corp (PAAS) is a Vancouver-based precious-metals mining company and one of the largest primary silver producers in the world, with significant gold output alongside the silver. They show up together because they share investment themes, but they are different businesses, so the better fit depends on which thesis you are expressing.
Is EXK or PAAS the better stock?
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Walnut is informational, not investment advice. Neither is universally better; EXK and PAAS suit different views and risk levels. Compare what each does, how they make money, and the risks, then decide which fits your thesis and what you already own.
Should you own both EXK and PAAS?
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Because they share themes, owning both concentrates you in that theme. That can be intentional (a focused bet) or accidental (less diversification than it looks). Walnut can show your combined exposure across both before you add the second.
What are the risks of EXK vs PAAS?
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EXK: Endeavour Silver's results are highly cyclical and move with the silver price, which is volatile and outside the company's control, so margins and the share price can swing sharply, and gold byproduct prices add another moving part. Jurisdictional and political risk is significant because its mines sit in Mexico and Peru, both of which carry permitting, tax, labor, and resource-nationalism risk. Execution risk on the Terronera ramp is real, as shown by the elevated Q4 2025 AISC of $41.19 per ounce during startup, and the planned cost normalization to roughly $27 to $28 per ounce in 2026 depends on reaching design grades and throughput. Cost inflation, a stronger Mexican peso, and integration of the Kolpa acquisition add further uncertainty, and the company reported a 2025 net loss of $119.1 million driven largely by derivative losses and higher finance costs. PAAS: Pan American's results are highly cyclical and move with silver and gold prices, which are volatile and outside the company's control, so margins and the share price can swing sharply. Jurisdictional and political risk is significant because its mines are concentrated across Latin America (Mexico, Peru, Bolivia, Argentina, and more), where tax, permitting, community-relations, and resource-nationalism risks recur. The Escobal mine in Guatemala remains suspended since 2017 with the Xinka Parliament having denied consent in 2025 and no restart timeline, capping a large silver asset. Cost inflation and rising all-in sustaining costs can erode margins, and integrating large acquisitions such as MAG Silver and Yamana carries execution risk.
Walnut is informational, not investment advice. This page is descriptive and not a recommendation to buy or sell EXK or PAAS; figures are approximate and dated. Verify current data before investing.