Gold mine stocks attractive in turbulent times

Genuity analyst Tony Lesiak expects larger gold players to swoop in on some of the smaller miners.

"Merger and acquisition activity in the gold sector could be poised to accelerate," Lesiak said.

He cited the improved outlook for precious metals, the disconnect between larger companies and cash-starved juniors, and a paucity of internally available quality growth projects.

Ian Nakamoto, director of research at MacDougall, MacDougall & MacTier, favoured unhedged miners.

"Most producers have an unhedged book, but rising production, such as a Goldcorp and Kinross (Gold Corp) are what come to mind," he said.