Six Years of Silver Deficits: Here Are Five Companies Holding Real Ounces
Global leader in precious metals streaming with a low-risk, high-margin business model.
The most recent news release (February 16, 2026) announces a massive production beat for 2025 and a transformative acquisition. Wheaton Precious Metals (WPM) exceeded its 2025 guidance, producing 691,670 gold equivalent ounces (GEOs) against a target of 600,000–670,000 GEOs. Furthermore, WPM announced the acquisition of an additional 33.75% silver stream on the Antamina mine from BHP for $4.3 billion, effectively doubling its total stream to 67.5% of payable silver.
WPM issued 2026 guidance of 860,000–940,000 GEOs, representing a nearly 30% increase from 2025 levels. Long-term projections have been revised upward to 1.2 million GEOs by 2030, a 50% growth trajectory from current levels. The February 19, 2026, news commentary further emphasizes WPM's position as a top-tier silver holder in a market facing multi-year silver deficits.
The impact is definitively a "Game Changer." - Accretive Growth: The Antamina transaction adds approximately 5.4 to 6 million ounces of attributable silver production annually for the next decade. - Guidance Revision: The jump from ~691k GEOs to a midpoint of 900k GEOs for 2026 is a massive step-change in production volume that few large-cap companies can achieve in a single year. - Financial Strength: WPM is leveraging a $1.5 billion term loan for the $4.3 billion payment, but with operating cash flows reaching record levels ($1.16 billion for 9mo 2025), the company’s ability to service this while remaining debt-lite is high. - Strategic Positioning: By doubling down on Antamina, one of the world's lowest-cost copper-zinc mines, WPM secures long-life production in the first quartile of the cost curve.
Wheaton Precious Metals is the world’s premier precious metals streaming company. Unlike traditional miners, WPM does not operate mines; instead, it provides upfront capital to miners in exchange for the right to purchase a percentage of future production at a low, fixed cost. - Flagship Project: Salobo (Brazil) remains a cornerstone, but Antamina (Peru) has now become a co-flagship following the $4.3 billion stream expansion. - Other Key Assets: Peñasquito, Constancia, and the newly acquired Spring Valley and Hemlo streams.