3 Mining Stocks for the New Gold Rush

All eyes have been on gold over the past few months because it's the glamorous metal. Gold's the metal that financial reporters like to talk about and it's the metal most investors clamor for. But while gold is hitting new all-time highs, other metals are posting much higher gains in 2009 and not a word has been said about them.

For instance, silver, long considered to be gold's poorer cousin, is up 59% for the year compared to gold's 25%. Platinum is also up nearly 60%. Copper prices have doubled. But nothing has come close to pallidium's returns, up nearly 95% in 2009.

While you can buy gold and silver through bars, coins and jewelry, it's not so easy to buy many of the other metals, especially if you're using them as an investment.

How Can An Investor Get Into the Metals Trade?

Investors can use ETFs to invest in some of the actual metals themselves but for those looking to buy stocks, shares of mining companies are the way to get in on the metal trade.

While there are a lot of choices out there amongst the mining companies, including buying the junior miners, a first time investor should consider one of the large global mining companies.

The global giants provide more diversity, as many of them mine in more than one metal and in numerous regions around the world. The diversity is a must have as unstable government regimes can wreck havoc with even the best mining plans.

The global miners also offer fairly stable dividends with decent yields which is an added bonus as the world's stock markets remain volatile.

3 Global Miners for 2010

BHP Billiton (BHP - Analyst Report) is headquartered in Australia and has operations in more than 25 countries around the world.

The company has its hands in just about every natural resource, including steelmaking products like iron ore, coal and manganese, non-ferrous products such as copper, nickel and diamonds and energy products including uranium, petroleum and liquefied natural gas.

Analysts see 27.89% earnings growth in fiscal 2010 which ends in June 2010. 2 out of 7 analysts have raised 2010 estimates in the last 30 days. Analysts are even more bullish on fiscal 2011, with earnings per share expected to jump another 48.50%.

The company is trading with a forward P/E of 27.8. It rewards shareholders with a dividend yielding 2.12%. BHP Billiton is a Zacks #3 Rank (hold) stock.

BHP Billiton has more than doubled off its November 2008 low.

Rio Tinto (RTP) is headquartered in London and has operations on every continent.

Like BHP, it has its hands in nearly every natural resource including aluminum, copper, diamonds, gold, industrial minerals, iron ore and energy products.

With metal prices rising, Rio Tinto is expected to grow its 2009 earnings by 43.35% over 2008. Analysts see the growth continuing into 2010 as the Zacks Consensus is at $16.23 per share which is 30.62% higher than the 2009 estimate of $12.43.

Rio Tinto has a solid valuation. It is trading with a forward P/E of just 16.8. It also pays a dividend with a yield of 1.30%. Rio Tinto is a Zacks #2 Rank (buy) stock.

Rio Tinto has doubled off its 2008 low.

Barrick Gold Corp. (ABX - Analyst Report) is the world's largest gold miner. Headquartered in Canada, Barrick operates 26 mines on 5 continents.

While gold is its biggest commodity, it also mines copper and silver, among other metals. On Dec 1, the company announced it had completely eliminated its gold hedges at the cost of $5.1 billion so that it could benefit from rising gold prices.

Earnings growth in 2009 has been non-existent. Analysts expect it to be 1.38% below 2008 earnings. But with the elimination of the gold hedges, analysts are more optimistic heading into 2010. 7 out of 22 analysts have raised 2010 estimates in the last 30 days. Earnings are expected to jump 25.52% over 2009.

Barrick has surprised on estimates 3 out of the last 4 quarters by an average of 10.87%. It has a P/E of 21.46. It also pays a dividend with a yield of 1.00%. Barrick is a Zacks #3 Rank (hold) stock.

You can see the bounce off the 2008 low in the 2-year chart.

(In full disclosure, the author of this article owns shares of BHP Billiton.)

Tracey Ryniec is the Value Stock Strategist for Zacks.com. She is also the Editor in charge of the market-beating Zacks Value Trader service.

Read the full analyst report on ABX

Read the full analyst report on RIO

Read the full analyst report on BHP