We recently published a list of the 12 Best Canadian Penny Stocks to Buy According to Analysts. In this article, we are going to take a look at where Western Copper and Gold Corporation (NYSEAMERICAN:WRN) stands against other best Canadian penny stocks to buy according to analysts.
According to a report by the Government of Canada, released on December 16, the country’s economic outlook has been revised upward, as private-sector economists forecast moderate growth of around 2% in the second half of 2025. The report highlights the average of private sector forecasts are used as the basis for economic and fiscal planning in Canada to ensure objectivity and transparency. The Department of Finance surveyed a group of 11 private sector economists in September 2024, who expect the Canadian economy to benefit from robust growth in the US, driven by rising equity markets and increasing confidence among US households and businesses. The economists forecast that the unemployment rate will also stabilize to 6.6% by the end of 2025 compared to 6.9% in the fourth quarter of 2024. The report also states that the government is reducing the federal debt-to-GDP ratio over the medium term. The federal debt-to-GDP ratio in 2023-24 was 42.1% and is forecasted to decline to 41.9% in 2024-25.
In an interview with BNN Bloomberg on January 3, Gavin Graham, Chief Investment Officer and Portfolio Manager at Spire Wealth Management, discussed the investment landscape for 2025, particularly focusing on Canadian stocks. Graham acknowledged that Canada has been a market leader in cutting interest rates which provides them a much better position than their U.S. counterparts, specifically in sectors such as pipelines, utilities, REITs, telecom, and financials, which are interest-rate sensitive industries.
In the energy sector, Graham expressed a preference for natural gas companies which have performed well due to low cost structure and the potential for increased demand due to the anticipation of colder weather in the US. Despite the local weather-related volatility in North America, he sees a positive outlook for the sector due to the impact of geopolitical events, such as Ukraine ending its gas imports from Russia, which could further influence natural gas prices.
Graham also recommended that investors allocate 5 to 10% of their portfolios to gold, citing the robust performance of gold miners. He noted that while gold itself was up 27% last year, gold miners have underperformed relative to the metal and suggests that major gold miners have the potential to outperform. Gold mining stocks, being a leveraged play on the price of gold, could see significant gains if the gold price continues to rise and can offer attractive dividend yields and a hedge against economic uncertainty.
Canada’s economic outlook for 2025 appears optimistic, with moderate growth expectations, a stabilizing unemployment rate, and a declining interest rate along with the favourable federal debt-to-GDP ratio. Investors seeking diversification and high-growth potential should look at opportunities in undervalued sectors within the Canadian market.
Is Western Copper and Gold Corporation (WRN) Among the Best Canadian Penny Stocks to Buy According to Analysts?
Aerial view of a mining site, with workers in orange vests maneuvering heavy machinery.
For this article, we used Finviz and Yahoo stock screeners to find the 30 largest Canadian companies trading under $5 as of January 5. We then sourced the analysts’ average price targets and picked the 12 stocks that had the highest upside potential. We also included their hedge fund sentiment, which was taken from Insider Monkey’s Hedge Fund database of 900 elite hedge funds as of Q3 of 2024. The list is sorted in ascending order of analysts’ average upside potential as of January 5.
Why do we care about what hedge funds do? The reason is simple: our research has shown that we can outperform the market by imitating the top stock picks of the best hedge funds. Our quarterly newsletter’s strategy selects 14 small-cap and large-cap stocks every quarter and has returned 275% since May 2014, beating its benchmark by 150 percentage points (see more details here).
Upside Potential: 286.36%
Stock Price as of January 5: $1.10
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 5
Western Copper and Gold Corporation (NYSEAMERICAN:WRN) is a Vancouver-based copper and gold explorer and developer seeking to establish strategic copper and gold production on the Casino Mineral Property in Yukon, Canada. The company’s Casino project, offers low-cost production of several metals, including copper and gold, over many decades.
The Casino project is a key driver of Western Copper and Gold Corporation’s (NYSEAMERICAN:WRN) growth strategy. The project is expected to produce approximately 6.95 million ounces of gold, 36.09 million ounces of silver, and 4.27 billion pounds of copper along with 346 million pounds of molybdenum over the 27-year life of the mine. The company plans to develop the project in a phased manner, with the initial phase focusing on the development of the open pit mine and the construction of a 120,000 tpd processing plant.
To support the development of the Casino project, Western Copper and Gold Corporation (NYSEAMERICAN:WRN) is focusing on securing financing. The company has already made progress in this regard, completing a bought deal public offering for gross proceeds of $46 million and securing an additional $3.46 million financing with Rio Tinto Group. The company is looking for additional financing options, including debt and equity financing. Western Copper and Gold Corporation (WRN) is also open to establishing partnerships with other mining companies and investors to support the development of the project.
Overall, WRN ranks 3rd on our list of best Canadian penny stocks to buy according to analysts. While we acknowledge the potential of WRN to grow, our conviction lies in the belief that AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns and doing so within a shorter time frame. If you are looking for an AI stock that is more promising than WRN but that trades at less than 5 times its earnings, check out our report about the cheapest AI stock.
