The Silver Bull is Back - From Silver Producers to Exploration Stocks What's Next?

Rio Silver’s flagship Maria Norte Project is a high grade silver dominant asset located in the historic Huachocolpa mining district in Peru, a well-established mining region with existing infrastructure, road access, and proximity to processing facilities.

Billionaire resource investor Eric Sprott recently completed a $2 million investment in the Company, representing approximately 10 percent ownership and further strengthening its capital position as it advances a low capex toll milling development model.

The silver bull-run in 2025 and early 2026 attracted a new following of investors for silver stocks that are just getting educated on the volatility of this precious metal. But the old-school, long term players have been betting on this commodity super-cycle for years.

Silver prices just saw big gains this week driven by a weakened US dollar, falling oil prices, and optimism on peace talks in the Iran war prior to the deadline in April. This perfect storm boosted interest in safe-haven assets but the run is also supported by increased industrial demand.

The bullish sentiment is also driven by analysts predicting silver prices in 2026. Well-known analysts forecast prices to average around $81/oz ( US) and potentially reach over $100 ( US) based on structural deficits and strong industrial demand, particularly in solar manufacturing. Some of the outliers are forecasting prices over $150 per ounce.

Looking at investor sentiment and some of the most talked about silver stocks (April 2026) on social media, the producers take the lead (according to AI Google Gemini). 

First Majestic Silver Corp. (NYSE:AG) (TSX:AG) is consistently the most discussed major silver producer on forums like Reddit and Instagram.

Pan American Silver Corp. (NYSE: PAAS) (TSX: PAAS) is widely talked about with investors for its high liquidity and large silver reserves. Pan American is a leading producer of silver and gold in the Americas, operating mines in Canada, Mexico, Peru, Brazil, Bolivia, Chile and Argentina.

Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL),frequently mentioned by investors as a top producer. Hecla Mining is the largest silver producer in the United States and Canada. In addition to operating mines in Alaska and Idaho, the Company is ramping up a mine in the Yukon, Canada, and owns a number of exploration and pre-development projects in world-class silver and gold mining districts throughout North America.

First Majestic Silver recently announced that total production in the first quarter of 2026 was 3.5 million ounces of silver (“Ag”), 34,341 ounces of gold (“Au”), 15.4 million pounds of zinc (“Zn”), 8.7 million pounds of lead (“Pb”) and 262,913 pounds of copper (“Cu”), across the Company’s four producing underground mines in Mexico, namely, the Santa Elena Silver/Gold Mine , the Los Gatos Silver Mine (the Company holds a 70% interest in the Los Gatos Joint Venture that owns the mine), the San Dimas Silver/Gold Mine (“San Dimas”), and the La Encantada Silver Mine (“La Encantada”).

More from the news: 

Q1 2026 PRODUCTION AND OTHER HIGHLIGHTS

Quarterly Silver Production (26% of guidance midpoint): The Company produced 3.5 million silver ounces in Q1 2026 compared to 3.7 million silver ounces produced in Q1 2025, representing 26% of the 2026 silver production guidance midpoint. The modest decrease in silver production was partially attributable to a lower head grade milled, reflecting a reduced cut-off grade in Q1 2026 versus Q1 2025 in response to a stronger metal price environment. This was partially offset by a 48% year-over-year increase in silver production at La Encantada, driven by higher grades mined from the Ojuelas zone.

Quarterly Gold Production (28% of guidance midpoint): The Company produced 34,341 gold ounces in Q1 2026 compared to 36,469 gold ounces produced in Q1 2025, representing 28% of the 2026 gold production guidance midpoint. The decline in gold production was primarily driven by lower gold grades milled, reflecting the application of a lower cut-off grade.

Continued Active Exploration Program: During the first quarter, the Company completed a total of approximately 65,970 metres (“m”) of drilling across its mines in Mexico. During the quarter, up to 27 drill rigs were active consisting of five rigs at Los Gatos, seven rigs at Santa Elena, 13 rigs at San Dimas, and two rigs at La Encantada.

Positioning as a junior to pay attention to, Rio Silver Inc.(TSX-V: RYO ) (OTC: RYOOF), provided an update on April 8. The Company provided an update on the progress of its ongoing metallurgical work at the Maria Norte silver dominant property, with recent results indicating that high silver and gold recoveries are achievable.

The Maria Norte silver-gold-lead property is located in the historic Huachocolpa Mining District in central Peru and covers an area of approximately 388 hectares. The Property is accessible by road and is adjacent to Silver X’s Tangana mining unit currently in production. Permitting is in progress and documentation has been submitted. Bulk sampling extraction is permitted while awaiting final approval for the environmental permit (IGAC) from the Peruvian government. 

Metallurgical Results Support Processing Strategy

Initial metallurgical results have confirmed the high recoveries of silver and gold at Maria Norte. The zinc content is determined to be insignificant compared with the silver-gold-lead. 

Metallurgical work and future processing focused on the recoveries of silver-gold-lead and therefore, the Company will design its processing methods to produce two concentrates consisting of a silver-gold-lead concentrate and a lower grade gold-silver-pyrite concentrate with minor amounts of lead. More importantly, the concentrates are expected to contain low levels of arsenic, which is a critical factor for commercial viability. Low arsenic content enhances marketability by reducing or eliminating smelter penalties, broadens the range of potential processing partners, and supports more favorable payability terms, all of which can have a direct positive impact on project economics.

A large composite sample over several tens of metres was recently taken from one of the surface showings exposing a quartz-lead (“Qtz-Pb”) sulphide vein with widths varying between 0.3 to 1.0 metre in width. The head grade of the composite sample returned 3.00 grams per metric tonne gold and 4.32 ounces per metric tonne silver, 4.05% lead and 1.61% lead oxide. Metallurgical results using flotation methods produced two concentrates. The first concentrate returned a mineral to concentrate ratio of 25 to 1, assaying 14.57 grams per metric tonne gold, 53.64 ounces per metric tonne silver and 54.17% lead. The second concentrate showed a mineral to concentrate ratio of 6.2 to 1 assaying 10.16 grams per metric tonne gold, 9.67 ounces per metric tonne silver and 13.85% lead. Both concentrates returned low arsenic levels returning 0.33 % and 0.36% respectfully. 

Chris Verrico the CEO of Rio Silver Inc. comments,

“The initial metallurgical work shows that the concentrates produced from the quartz-lead veins are returning good recoveries and low arsenic content. We are aware that this mineral will be highly marketable in Peru since it could be blended with gold-silver-lead concentrates that contain elevated arsenic levels. Further metallurgical work is ongoing as it appears that there exist two different vein set types, that may require different methods of processing optimization, to achieve optimal recoveries. 

We are focused on advancing toward bulk sampling, concentrate generation, and processing in 2026 and 2027, and we are highly encouraged by the progress being made. The months ahead are expected to be active as we continue executing on our strategy. I can say with confidence that the Company is in the strongest position it has ever been in, both operationally and financially.”

Jeffrey Reeder P.Geo, a qualified person as defined in NI 43-101, has prepared, supervised the preparation or approved of the scientific and technical disclosure contained in this news release. The metallurgical work was performed by Jose Orlando Moncada Rejas, Ing, who is the metallurgist responsible for the work performed. Assaying of the material was performed by Procesmin Ingenieros SRL, located in Caraz Ancash, by fire assay for gold-silver. 

On April 1st, Rio Silver Inc.(TSX-V: RYO) (OTC: RYOOF) announce that it received the first US$100,000 advanced royalty payment from Magma Silver Corp. pursuant to the previously announced option agreement on its Niñobamba gold-silver property in Peru.

Under the terms of the option agreement, Magma Silver has the right to earn a 100% interest in the Niñobamba project upon full exercise of the option. The agreement provides for total payments of $260,000, which have been received, and additional milestone payments of up to US$2,000,000, including US$500,000 in advanced royalty payments to be paid over the next five years. The initial US$100,000 payment received will be credited against a 2% net smelter return (“NSR”) royalty retained by Rio Silver.

Magma Silver retains the right to repurchase 1% of the NSR for US$1,000,000 at any time prior to commercial production.

In addition, Rio Silver confirms that it has previously received 2,500,000 common shares of Magma Silver Corp., and will receive a further 2,500,000 common shares on April 15, 2026, pursuant to the terms of the agreement.

Management Commentary:

“This is an important milestone for Rio Silver as we begin to realize value from our royalty portfolio,” said Chris Verrico, President and Chief Executive Officer of Rio Silver. “The receipt of advanced royalty payments and the upcoming additional share issuance from Magma Silver reinforces the strength of our broader asset base and provides meaningful non-dilutive exposure as we continue advancing Maria Norte.”

“Our focus remains on disciplined execution at Maria Norte, while maintaining strategic exposure to additional upside through royalties and equity positions that can generate value without shareholder dilution.”

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