Junior gold stocks are seeing heightened interest in 2026 despite volatility in the gold price, which reached a new record high of nearly US$5,600 per ounce during the first quarter.The gold price may have fallen to the US$4,000 level in the second and third quarters, but plenty of upside potential remains in the precious metals market.Below the Investing News Network profiles the five Canadian gold companies on the TSXV that are the best performers of 2026 so far by year-to-date share price gains.Data for this article was retrieved on October 19, 2026, using TradingView’s stock screener, and only companies with market capitalizations greater than C$10 million at that time are included.
1. San Lorenzo Gold (TSXV:SLG)
Year-to-date gain: 709.41 percentMarket cap: C$551.94 millionShare price: C$6.88San Lorenzo Gold is an exploration company working to advance its Salvadora project in the Chañaral province of Chile. The property covers an area of nearly 12,000 hectares in the Atacama region, and hosts a large copper and gold porphyry system with several significant targets, including Cerro Blanco and Arco de Oro.San Lorenzo finished 2025 as the year’s top performing TSXV gold stock after gaining over 1,000 percent from its open of C$0.08, spurred by discoveries at the Cerro Blanco target. The gold stock has continued its upward trajectory in 2026.San Lorenzo has been actively exploring the property throughout 2026, and on June 29, it reported results from four shallower holes testing the epithermal vein system at the San Juan extension, about 3.5 kilometers northwest of the Arco de Oro core zone. All four intersected mineralization, extending the known strike by about 0.5 kilometers. The best returned 45 meters grading 1.24 grams per metric ton (g/t) gold from 113.5 meters, including 4.6 meters grading 5.22 g/t gold.The most recent exploration-related news came on September 17, when San Lorenzo provided an exploration update outlining a new target at Quebrada Salada, where mapping and surface sampling identified a gold-bearing structural corridor about 2 kilometers long, with samples returning up to 12.8 g/t gold. The corridor sits next to geophysical anomalies that have not yet been drill tested.According to the update, new survey lines have expanded the San Juan target area well beyond the ground tested by drilling so far, and the company is planning step out drilling from its San Juan discovery holes. Lastly, it noted that drilling at Cerro Blanco is underway.In addition to its exploration efforts, San Lorenzo has made several business announcements. On August 4, the company appointed Brandon Gaspar as CEO, effective September 1 and moved co-founder and former CEO Al Kroontje to executive chair. Then, on October 16, the company announced an upsized private placement for gross proceeds of up to C$80 million, doubling the original offering. The company will use the proceeds for exploration at Salvadora, and the placement is expected to close on or about November 10.Shares in San Lorenzo reached a year-to-date high of C$7.65 on September 22.
2. NV Gold (TSXV:NVX)
Year-to-date gain: 460 percentMarket cap: C$36.61 millionShare price: C$1.12NV Gold is an exploration company advancing its Slumber gold project in Nevada, US.The property, located in Humboldt County, consists of 130 lode mining claims and about 1,500 acres of private ranch land, and hosts epithermal gold mineralization.On August 6, NV Gold acquired a mining and exploration lease covering 1,500 acres of private land adjacent to the Slumber property’s Awakening target to the north and the Slumber target to the south. The company also announced a 5,000 meter drill program at the Slumber project.Drilling began in late August, and on September 23 the company reported assay results for three of the first six drill holes, including one at Awakening that intersected 41.14 meters grading 0.884 g/t gold from a depth of 158.5 meters, which NV called a discovery hole.On October 20, NV Gold released assays from seven more holes, confirming and expanding mineralization at the Awakening and eastern DeLong Ridge zones. The best returned 65.53 meters grading 1.34 g/t gold from 118.87 meters, including 25.91 meters grading 2.52 g/t gold. The company said “the results are beginning to outline a contiguous body of mineralization that remains open in several dimensions,” and that oxidation levels are observed at depths of up to over 225 meters.At the time, the company had completed 17 holes of reverse circulation drilling and planned to continue drilling into November, and potentially later, with 15 more drill holes. NV Gold has also engaged a contractor for a diamond core program of more than 3,000 meters beginning in January 2027.In addition to exploration, NV Gold raised funds with multiple non-brokered private placements in 2026. The most recent announcement came on September 25 when it closed the final tranche of a placement, raising aggregate proceeds of C$1.4 million between two tranches. The company expects to use the funds for a future drill program and general working capital. Shares in NV Gold reached a year-to-date high of C$1.35 on October 2.
3. Auro Metals (TSXV:AURO)
Year-to-date gain: 410.34 percentMarket cap: C$190.14 millionShare price: C$1.48Auro Metals, previously named Tincorp Metals, is focused on exploration at its new, wholly owned Santa Barbara gold-copper project in the Zamora copper-gold belt of Southeast Ecuador.Santa Barbara hosts a large-scale porphyry system with an indicated resource of 29.8 million metric tons of ore grading 0.73 g/t gold and 0.1 percent copper, and an inferred resource of 205.7 million metric tons grading 0.52 g/t gold and 0.09 percent copper.The company closed its acquisition of project owner Santa Barbara Metals from Silvercorp Metals (TSX:SVM,NYSEAMERICAN:SVM) on May 13, and changed its name and ticker the following month to reflect the new focus.Auro has actively explored the property since its acquisition and released multiple rounds of drill results with broad intervals of mineralization, including some starting near surface. On September 15, the company announced it had completed its Phase 1 drilling, totaling 22 holes and 11,047 meters. The same release reported results from the deepest hole ever drilled at Santa Barbara, which intersected 905.22 meters grading 0.6 g/t gold and 0.12 percent copper from 56.5 meters, with weaker mineralization further down continuing to the end of the hole at 1,282 meters.“On a gram by metre basis, it returned the best reportable intercept at the Project to date, including all historical drilling,” CEO Victor Feng said.Auro has moved straight into a 20,000 meter Phase 2 program, which will fill gaps between known parts of the deposit, step out to test new targets and test the deposit at greater depth than it had previously. When it released the final Phase 1 results on October 13, Auro said four rigs had already completed the first four Phase 2 diamond holes and three more rigs were being mobilized to site. The company is also preparing samples for metallurgical testing ahead of a future resource update.Shares in Auro reached a year-to-date high of C$1.97 on July 15.
4. Trans Canada Gold (TSXV:TTG)
Year-to-date gain: 300 percentMarket cap: C$10.57 millionShare price: C$0.18Trans Canada Gold is an exploration company focused on its Harrison Lake gold project in southwestern British Columbia, Canada.The company entered into a five-year option agreement with Bear Mountain Gold Mines on February 2 to acquire a 60 percent interest in the project in exchange for C$250,000 cash consideration, C$5 million in exploration expenditures and 10 million Trans Canada shares.The property consists of 29 claims covering 5,068 hectares on Bear Mountain, near Harrison Lake, and hosts intrusion-related gold mineralization along a 7 kilometer ridge. Previous operators completed about 20,000 meters of drilling and several hundred meters of underground development prior to 2000, but its historic estimate has not been converted into a current mineral resource.Trans Canada spent the spring preparing the site for underground drilling, including installing new electrical facilities. On August 20, Trans Canada announced it had completed a Phase 1 underground drill program at the site. The company is logging and preparing Phase 1 core for analysis, and assays have not yet been released. The company also noted it passed a mine inspection by BC’s Ministry of Mines. To fund its next round of work, Trans Canada announced a private placement and, on October 9, said it closed the first tranche of a non-brokered private placement raising gross proceeds of C$2.14 million, with a second tranche expected by October 26. The company budgeted about C$1.7 million for a Phase 2 program that includes at least 2,500 meters of underground drilling and 1,500 meters of surface drilling.Shares in Trans Canada reached a year-to-date high of C$0.24 on September 9.
5. Tombill Mines (TSXV:TBLL)
Year-to-date gain: 266.67 percentMarket cap: C$13.18 millionShare price: C$0.055Tombill Mines is a gold exploration company with properties in the Geraldton gold camp within the Greenstone gold district of Northwestern Ontario, Canada.The company holds 74 claims covering 3,168 acres across four claim groups, including two past-producing mines. Its largest holding is the 58-claim Main Group, bordering Equinox Gold’s (TSX:EQX,NYSEAMERICAN:EQX) Greenstone gold mine.On June 18, Tombill completed a strategic investment and royalty deal with Dynamo Metals, a private investment company founded by former Equinox Gold CEO Greg Smith, who led Equinox through the acquisition, financing and construction of the Greenstone mine. Dynamo bought 28.95 million shares in Tombill for gross proceeds of about C$579,000, giving it about a 9.9 percent stake in Tombill, and paid an additional C$250,000 for a 1 percent net smelter return royalty on all of the company’s claims. Dynamo agreed to terms including not raising its holdings above 9.9 percent without Tombill’s consent.Additionally, Smith joined Tombill as a strategic advisor, and Tombill said it plans to draw on his experience as it advances its projects. The company will use the proceeds for working capital and field work on its Geraldton property from 2026 to 2028.Shares in Tombill spiked in mid-August and reached a year-to-date high of C$0.06 on August 26.
Don’t forget to follow us @INN_Resource for real-time updates!Securities Disclosure: I, Dean Belder, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.
www.nasdaq.com