Silver-Gold Miner Targets Massive Resource Expansion Across Alaska, BC Portfolio

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2. As of the date of this article, officers, contractors, shareholders, and/or employees of Streetwise Reports LLC (including members of their household) own securities of Contango Silver and Gold Inc.
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1. Ownership and Share Structure Information

The information listed above was updated on the date this article was published and was compiled from information from the company and various other data providers.

Contango Silver and Gold Inc. (CTGO:TSX; CTGO:NYSE American) recently shared updates on its 2026 initiatives across its portfolio, highlighting significant developments in its drilling and permitting activities in a June 23 release.

Contango (get its investor presentation and more here) said it started its Lucky Shot surface drill program on June 22, deploying two helicopter-supported drill rigs to the site. The plan includes drilling a total of 29 holes across five platforms, covering approximately 6,800 meters. This drilling effort aims to infill areas within the Coleman section of the resource and to conduct step-out drilling to explore the structural link between the Coleman and Lucky Shot vein systems.

"We are incredibly excited to kick off the surface drilling program at Lucky Shot," Contango Vice President of Exploration Dave Larimer said. "This deposit has already demonstrated continuity and growth potential, and getting the rigs turning on the surface allows us to test the down-dip extension of the Coleman zone toward the Lucky Shot vein system in addition to providing the infill we need to complete a feasibility level mine design. We're eager to see what the core reveals as we push to unlock the full value of this system."

In parallel, the company said it is making steady progress with the permitting for the Johnson Tract project's surface infrastructure, which includes an access road and a barge facility that will connect the site to the coast. The permitting process is on schedule, with six actions completed so far, and updates are being provided transparently via the federal FAST-41 permitting dashboard.

The Johnson Tract camp has been opened for the summer to support extensive field activities, the company said. These include environmental and cultural baseline studies such as marine and freshwater quality surveys, various wildlife surveys, wetlands mapping, and cultural resource studies.

Additionally, summer operations involve geotechnical drilling for the road access and barge landing facility, and the construction of a 2.6-mile road on land owned by Cook Inlet Regional Inc. (CIRI), linking the camp to the proposed exploration portal location, the release said. Equipment mobilization via barge and helicopter is underway and will continue through June and July, with construction activities expected to extend into October.

"This summer marks a pivotal operational shift for Contango as we advance Johnson Tract," Chief Executive Officer Rick Van Nieuwenhuyse said. "Following our entry into the federal FAST-41 program, our permitting efforts have given us a clear, predictable timeline to unlock this high-grade critical metals project. Our focus on the ground this season is twofold: expanding our environmental baseline studies to ensure top-tier stewardship to support the permitting processes, and executing the critical infrastructure required to connect our existing camp to the proposed portal location."

He continued, "This access road will allow us to start construction on the underground exploration tunnel in 2027 once all permits have been received."

Kitsault Valley Update

Contango said its Kitsault Valley drilling program is progressing smoothly, with over 14,000 meters already completed as part of the planned 40,000-meter surface drill program. The focus has been on infill and extensional drilling at key sites including Torbrit, North Star, Wolf, and Red Point. Initial samples from Torbrit and North Star have been dispatched to the analytical facility, with assay results anticipated to begin arriving during the third quarter.

Additionally, the updated mineral resource estimate (MRE) for Kitsault Valley is expected to be released by late July.

"We are tracking well ahead of schedule in the Kitsault Valley, with over one-quarter of our planned 40,000-metre surface drill program already completed," President Shawn Khunkhun said. "The exceptional efficiency of our team on the ground has given us an incredible head start this season. We are highly encouraged by the strong visual indicators and historical continuity we are seeing as we systematically target resource expansion and infill zones, and we look forward to reporting a steady stream of assay results as they become available."

In another development, the company has successfully managed its hedge contracts for 2026. During the first and second quarters of the year, the company has been actively fulfilling its gold delivery obligations under the 2026 hedge contracts. It has successfully delivered all the remaining 11,000 ounces for the 2026 obligations ahead of schedule, with plans to deliver the remaining 15,000 ounces of gold hedge contracts in the first half of 2027.

Contango Chief Financial Officer Mike Clark commented on the successful management of the hedge contracts. He stated, "We are pleased to have delivered into our entire hedge book for 2026, resulting in more exposure to high gold prices for the company." Clark also indicated that the company is focused on eliminating the remainder of the hedges within the year, aiming to capitalize further on favorable gold market conditions.

'A Destination Investment' for Americans, Canadians

In a contributed opinion piece for Streetwise Reports on May 18, 321gold.com's Bob Moriarty noted that the new Contango was built by longtime friends in the resource sector, and "will be the destination investment for American and Canadian resource investors."

"One huge blunder that 99% of management teams at resource companies commit is repeatedly diluting their share price and float through round after round of private placements," he wrote.

The largest retail market globally is significantly supported by American investors, a critical source of capital especially coveted by resource companies. However, these firms often face a challenge as brokers typically do not promote shares priced under US$5, effectively sidelining penny juniors from the conversation. This pricing strategy has inadvertently limited the access of many junior resource companies to the lucrative U.S. investment market.

"Two serious Canadian juniors saw the problem and turned it to their advantage by combining. The bigger of the two was Contango, which had a sizable Alaska footprint, and it recently joined forces with the well-known Dolly Varden," Moriarty noted. "The combined entity, in my view, is on track to become the go-to North American gold and silver name."

The leadership of the merged entity brings significant industry experience and insight. Van Nieuwenhuyse, a familiar figure in the resource sector and the founder and former chief of NovaGold — Canada's top-performing stock in 2001 — is at the helm as CEO.

According to Moriarty, under his leadership, NovaGold was one of the early companies he covered that capitalized on the burgeoning bull market in gold and silver starting in the late 1990s. Joining him in leadership, Khunkhun, another seasoned professional, has taken on the role of president.

Analysts React to Financial Results

Cantor Fitzgerald Analyst Mike Kozak on May 14 provided an update on the first quarter of 2026 financial results for a company, describing the performance as mixed. The company's financial outcomes were notably impacted by realized losses on its gold hedge position, amounting to US$19 million (US$1.10 per share). Additionally, operational results suffered due to lower throughput and higher unit costs at the Manh Choh site in Alaska, primarily due to exceptionally severe winter conditions. The headline earnings per share (EPS) was reported at US$(0.83), but when excluding the realized gold hedge losses, the adjusted EPS stood at US$0.27, falling short of the anticipated US$0.36.

At the end of the first quarter, the company reported having US$97 million in cash, up from US$65 million at the end of the fourth quarter of 2025, and total debt slightly decreased. From an operational standpoint, the company's net sales for the quarter amounted to 8,000 ounces of gold, marking a 29% increase quarter-over-quarter. However, the all-in sustaining cost (AISC) was reported at US$2,778 per ounce, which is above the company's full-year guidance of US$2,200 to US$2,300 per ounce. Despite these challenges, the company received a US$9 million cash distribution from the Peak Gold Joint Venture (Manh Choh mine).

Looking ahead, the company has reiterated its production guidance for 2027 and plans to eliminate its remaining gold hedge position, which consists of 22,000 ounces at US$2,025 per ounce, by the first half of 2027. Kozak adjusted the price target from US$29 to US$30 per share and reiterated a Speculative Buy rating on the company.

In another analysis, Freedom Broker Analyst Vitaly Kononov viewed the results as structurally neutral and pointed to the upcoming updates on Campaign #2 and the timeline for the Kitsault Valley Mineral Resource Estimate (MRE), expected by the end of Q2 2026, as potential catalysts.

The FY2026 and FY2027 joint venture distribution guidance remains unchanged at US$48–54 million and US$165–175 million, respectively. The cost guidance for FY2026 also remains unchanged at US$1,900–US$2,000 per ounce.

Kononov highlighted that the Kitsault Valley project is a significant near-term re-rating catalyst. An updated Mineral Resource Estimate for the project, which will include results from the 2025 drill program, is anticipated by the end of Q2 2026.

The project's exploration budget for 2026 at Kitsault includes approximately 40,000 meters of surface drilling starting in June 2026. Any upgrade to the current 34.7 million ounces of silver and 166,000 ounces of gold indicated resource could independently catalyze the stock, irrespective of Manh Choh's production cycle.

The Freedom Broker's US$41 per share price target is based on a 50% weighting on DCF (FCFF), 25% on FY2 P/E, and 25% on FY2 EV/EBITDA, with the Q1 2026 results not materially altering any of these inputs. The stock is rated a Buy.

Some Turbulence in the Sector

On Wednesday morning, the price of gold fell to US$3,988.60, experiencing a nearly 4% decrease and reaching its lowest level since November, reported Conor Murray for Forbes on June 24. Similarly, the price of silver also declined, recorded at US$58.44 at the same time, marking a nearly 6% drop. Earlier in the morning, silver had briefly dipped even lower to US$58.09. Over the past week, both metals have seen a steady decline, with silver dropping approximately 16% and gold about 8% from their prices a week prior.

The significant drop in silver's price is particularly notable as it now stands at less than half of its all-time high of US$121, reached in January, Murray wrote. The decline in metal prices has been ongoing throughout the war in Iran and is further influenced by market expectations that the Federal Reserve will increase interest rates later this year.

Ole S. Hansen, head of commodity strategy at Saxo Bank, commented on the situation in a post on X on Wednesday morning, Murray reported. He noted that metal prices are being "pressured by a stronger dollar amid a technology-led equity selloff." Additionally, the U.S. dollar index has risen by 0.36% on Wednesday morning to 101.77, reaching its highest point in over a year. This increase in the dollar's strength coincides with a selloff in tech stocks, which analysts have linked to concerns over upcoming earnings reports from major companies like chip maker Micron.

Reporting for FX Street on June 24, Guillermo Alcala noted that XAG/USD was trading at US$57.14, extending a bearish near-term bias, with an oversold condition highlighting a stretched downtrend.

"The 4-hour Relative Strength Index (14) lies near 20 while the Moving Average Convergence Divergence (MACD) histogram remains negative but converging towards the zero level, suggesting that bears might be exhausted," he wrote.

Looking ahead, if prices were to decline further, the next support level is anticipated to be around the mid-US$54s, which corresponds to the highs seen in October and November of 2025. Should the downward trend continue beyond this point, the next significant support level could be the low from November 21, 2025, which stands at US$48.64.

Conversely, any attempts at recovery in the market are expected to encounter initial resistance near the US$61.40 mark, a level that previously acted as support, Alcala said. Should prices push past this resistance, the next challenges are likely to be found at higher levels, specifically around the US$67.00 mark, which corresponds to the high on June 22, and further up near US$71.60, the peak reached on June 17. These resistance levels will be critical for determining the potential for upward movement in the market.

Ownership and Share Structure¹

About 8% of Contango is held by insiders, about 37% by institutions, and the rest, 55%, is retail.

Top shareholders include Franklin Advisers Inc. with 4.12%, John P. Juneau with 2.3%, The Vanguard Group Inc. with 2.24%, Kenneth R. Peak Marital Trust with 2.18%, and BlackRock Institutional Trust Co. with 3.72%.

Its market cap is US$481.43 million with 32.27 million shares outstanding. It trades in a 52-week range of US$14.50 and US$34.38.