Summary With Bitcoin ETFs on track for their worst month and gold prices down from record highs, now can be a good time to take a closer look at these assets. In an environment defined by economic and market uncertainty, investors are increasingly looking beyond traditional equity for assets that can provide diversification and potential inflation protection. The five companies spotlighted in this list illustrate how both crypto-linked equities and gold miners can provide leveraged exposure to alternative asset types. Similar to how crypto stock prices move in relation to cryptocurrency, gold miners usually act as leveraged bets on gold. Crypto vs Gold: Asset Correlation and Stock Performance As Bitcoin ( BTC-USD ) trades nearly 30% below its all-time high and potentially on track for its worst month , comparisons to gold are ramping up in financial media. While many investors choose one over the other, cryptocurrency and gold have distinct benefits and risks to understand before buying the assets or their respective equities. For long-term investors, considering both crypto and gold can work together as diversification tools, offering a combination of high-beta and low-beta investments. However, be cautious about over-allocating to either, as they both have potential for short-term volatility or long periods of underperformance compared to traditional equities. With both assets down from recent highs, now can be a good time to take a closer look at each. As many gold investors understand, the performance of the asset ( gold spot price ) doesn’t always closely correlate with the equity class (gold miners, GDX ). The same goes for cryptocurrency ( BTC ) and crypto stocks ( CRPT ). Seeking Alpha Cryptocurrency vs Physical Gold Here’s a basic, high-level breakdown of crypto vs gold as assets, followed by those assets vs their relative equity class: Crypto is high-beta "risk on" while gold is low-beta, "risk off." Their performance correlation is inconsistent. Gold benefits from falling real yields while crypto benefits from rising liquidity. Crypto is momentum-driven, and gold is macro-driven. Crypto is more sensitive to regulation, technology shifts, and market structure. Both assets benefit from distrust of financial systems and weakening fiat currency. Cryptocurrency vs Crypto Stocks There’s a distinction in the financial world between cryptocurrency and crypto stocks that boils down to what an investor actually owns. Cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and Ethereum ( ETH-USD ) are digital assets – virtual currencies or a medium of exchange, and typically subject to dramatic price swings. Crypto stocks, similar to traditional stocks, offer investors fractional ownership in a company. Below is a breakdown: Crypto-related stocks, such as Coinbase Global, Inc. ( COIN ) and Strategy Inc ( MSTR ), typically show strong correlation to Bitcoin in bull markets. However crypto stocks behave like leveraged plays on the underlying token because of shifts in miners’ margins, and they carry operating debt and energy costs. Crypto stocks may also amplify risks associated with Bitcoin, including regulatory pressure, such as SEC actions, operational failures, and trading or liquidity disruptions, such as the FTX collapse. Seeking Alpha Physical Gold vs Gold Miners Investors in gold equities should understand the performance relationship between the commodity price and the stock: Physical gold and gold miners have a moderate to strong performance correlation. Similar to the relationship between cryptocurrency and crypto stocks, gold miners usually act as leveraged bets on gold. For example, miners’ performance will be higher than gold in a bull market, but will fall further in a bear. In higher inflationary environments, such as 2022-2023, miner stocks tend to underperform gold because of tighter margins and investors migrating to the physical commodity over the equity class. Seeking Alpha How I Chose the Best Crypto and Gold Stocks I first looked at SA’s Top Cryptocurrency Stocks for a quick look at the preset screener. For gold stocks, I used the custom Seeking Alpha Screener and filtered for the Gold industry under the Materials sector. I also looked back at my recent articles, Gold Rush: Top 5 Gold Mining Stocks and 5 Best Stocks For Mild Stagflation . I chose the best stocks that have strong Factor Grades. 1. Galaxy Digital Inc. ( GLXY ) Market Capitalization: $9.15B Quant Rating: Strong Buy Quant Sector Ranking (as of 11/24/2025): 9 out of 680 Quant Industry Ranking (as of 11/24/2025): 1 out of 96 Sector: Financials Industry: Asset Management and Custody Banks Seeking Alpha Galaxy Digital is a diversified financial services and investment platform built specifically for the digital asset ecosystem, spanning asset management, trading, lending, market making, mining, venture capital, and infrastructure. Unlike pure-play miners or single-segment crypto companies, Galaxy operates more like a crypto merchant bank, earning revenue from multiple lines tied to institutional adoption of blockchain and digital assets. This diversified model positions GLXY to benefit across market cycles, especially when Bitcoin ETF flows, tokenization, and institutional demand resume previous momentum and scale globally. Seeking Alpha While GLXY’s P/E of 30.97 is high compared to the broader financials sector standards, its valuation is helped by its forward EV/Sales of 0.13, which is rock bottom and attractive compared to the sector median of 3.09. GLXY’s profitability is a standout as its profit margin is an even 100% for the past 12 months, while growth is expected to remain robust as its forward revenue growth of 360% illustrates. At its quarterly earnings call last month, management stated that Helios, its massive AI data center being developed in Texas, is expected to begin generating cash flow by the end of Q1 2026 and intends for this to ramp up significantly by year-end. Galaxy’s CEO Michael Novogratz explained, “We start cash flowing probably end of the first quarter and, by the end of the year, it's really cash flowing. And 18 months after that, it's hundreds of millions of dollars per quarter.” The company remains focused on building recurring revenue streams, with a goal to increase assets on the platform across staking, asset management, and lending. Next, we move to a more traditional crypto-linked business on the mining side. 2. Hut 8 Corp. ( HUT ) Market Capitalization: $3.71B Quant Rating: Strong Buy Quant Sector Ranking (as of 11/24/2025): 10 out of 538 Quant Industry Ranking (as of 11/24/2025): 1 out of 179 Sector: Information Technology Industry: Application Software Seeking Alpha Unlike many miners that rely on a single revenue channel, Hut 8 has diversified into AI/high-performance computing and data center hosting, giving it additional income streams beyond Bitcoin mining. Its merger with US Bitcoin Corp in 2023 expanded its geographic footprint, energy capabilities, and operational scale, making it one of the most vertically integrated mining platforms in the region. That said, HUT is much more of a data center expansion play than a value idea. Investors buying HUT must believe this AI transition will outweigh the lingering risk and associated volatility tied to the price of Bitcoin, of which it held approximately $1.6 billion as of September 30. Thus, its price is still heavily tied to Bitcoin’s price. 1-Month Price Movement: Bitcoin, HUT Seeking Alpha HUT shareholders are essentially betting on the company’s double leverage: it benefits directly from rising Bitcoin prices while also benefitting from the increasing demand for AI infrastructure. And while HUT, like many stocks have been impacted over the last month by a rotation out of tech , the company was added to the PRO Quant Portfolio on November 10, 2025, which delivers 30 high-conviction investment ideas that span multiple regions and market caps and rebalances weekly. In keeping with its leveraged performance nature, HUT has historically outperformed BTC in bull phases; however, the stock’s 27% price decline over the past month is steeper in the crypto asset’s 22%. But in the spirit of transparency, I like to highlight stocks added to portfolios that may present dip-buying opportunities, particularly given HUT’s strong fundamentals. To get an idea of where HUT can go when the beaten-down market segments resume their positive momentum, HUT’s A+ profitability factor provides a good perspective. HUT’s 281% EBITDA margin suggests the company can generate significant cash flow from operations, has potential for scalability, and possesses strong pricing power. Seeking Alpha If Bitcoin holds its long-term trend, HUT’s AI business model could outperform more narrowly focused mining peers. Next, we shift from the digital asset world to hard asset producers, beginning with one of the world’s largest gold miners. 3. Newmont Corporation ( NEM ) Market Capitalization: $91.11B Quant Rating: Strong Buy Quant Sector Ranking (as of 11/24/2025): 8 out of 276 Quant Industry Ranking (as of 11/24/2025): 7 out of 47 Sector: Materials Industry: Gold Seeking Alpha Another member of the PRO Quant Portfolio is Newmont, a leading global gold mining company with a diversified portfolio across North America, South America, Australia and Africa. The company produces not only gold but also copper, silver, lead, and zinc, giving it broad exposure to both safe-haven metals and industrial commodities. Newmont’s scale allows it to operate some of the lowest-cost and longest-life mines in the world, providing a level of production stability that smaller miners cannot match. Newmont stands out because it offers investors the closest thing to a “blue-chip” miner, as it combines strong liquidity, a durable dividend, low geopolitical risk, and significant leverage to gold’s price. Gold vs NEM: YTD Performance Seeking Alpha Looking at its fundamentals, NEM’s valuation has a strong foundation with a P/E of 13.37, which is below the sector median’s 15.48. Meanwhile, my favorite valuation metric, PEG, is attractively low at 0.23, and far below peers. Making its solid valuation backdrop stronger, NEM’s growth history and forward prospects help to make this miner a Quant Strong Buy. Year-over-year EBITDA growth of over 100% crushes the sector median’s 5.3% growth, while forward EBITDA growth is expected to remain quite healthy at a little over 53% while peers remain near 5%. Seeking Alpha Next, we examine another compelling miner that offers lower cost production and attractive valuation and growth metrics. 4. SSR Mining Inc. ( SSRM ) Market Capitalization: $4.06B Quant Rating: Strong Buy Quant Sector Ranking (as of 11/24/2025): 5 out of 276 Quant Industry Ranking (as of 11/24/2025): 5 out of 47 Sector: Materials Industry: Gold Seeking Alpha SSRM is a mid-tier precious metals producer with operations in the U.S., Turkey, Canada, and Argentina. The company has a well-balanced product mix of gold and silver, with an emphasis on efficient, low-cost operations that drive strong free cash flow potential. SSR Mining has historically differentiated itself with a disciplined capital structure, a solid balance sheet, and a track record of profitable mine operation and exploration across multiple regions. For a peek into my Alpha Picks , SSRM was added to the portfolio on June 16, and it has far-outpaced the miner sector as a whole and has clearly crushed the equity market (S&P 500) since then. SSRM vs GDX vs S&P 500: Performance 06/16 - 11/24-2025 Seeking Alpha Like NEM, SSRM has an attractive P/E and PEG , with the former sitting more than 20% below the sector at 11.90, and the latter metric is a rock bottom 0.10, more than 90% below peers. Also like NEM, SSRM’s growth story makes its valuation even more attractive. Seeking Alpha At its quarterly call earlier in November, Executive Chairman Rodney Antal indicated, “we continue to expect a stronger fourth quarter" and reaffirmed that “we are on track to finish within our full year guidance of 410,000 to 480,000 gold equivalent ounces.” While the macro backdrop for gold has been mixed in the wake of the government shutdown and expectations, the odds of a rate cut, as measured by the Fed Funds futures , is back up to 80% this week from 41% last week. Meanwhile, UBS raised its gold price to $4,900/oz from $4,700/oz, citing "persistent geopolitical uncertainties, noise around US midterm elections, and rising fiscal concerns." Finally, we turn to a miner with substantial emerging market leverage and high sensitivity to rising gold prices. 5. Gold Fields Limited ( GFI ) Market Capitalization: $34.21B Quant Rating: Strong Buy Quant Sector Ranking (as of 11/24/2025): 8 out of 276 Quant Industry Ranking (as of 11/24/2025): 8 out of 47 Sector: Materials Industry: Gold Seeking Alpha Gold Fields is one of the world’s largest gold producers, operating major assets across South Africa, Ghana, Australia, and Latin America. The company focuses on large, long-life, open-pit operations with strong production consistency and competitive sustaining costs. Gold Fields also invests heavily in tech-driven efficiency improvements, helping it to maintain competitive margins even during inflationary periods. Like NEM and SSRM, GFI sports a lot of green in its Factor Grades with a valuation and growth combination that make it a Quant Strong Buy and an outstanding holding assuming gold continues its upward trajectory. Seeking Alpha When a stock has a valuation below the sector median and growth is projected to continue at a much faster rate than its peers, you have a great combination. GFI’s P/E ratio is a healthy 12.06%, which is more than 22% below the sector median, while the all-important PEG is exceptional at 0.26 and nearly 80% below peers. GFI’s growth is stellar as it has expanded year-over-year revenue by 50% and its forward EBITDA growth is expected at over 46%. Seeking Alpha Together, the five companies spotlighted in this list illustrate how both crypto-linked equities and gold miners can provide leveraged exposure to alternative asset types. Conclusion: Top Crypto Stocks vs the Best Gold Miners In an environment defined by slow-to-moderate economic growth, elevated geopolitical risk, and the possibility of persistent inflation, investors are increasingly looking beyond traditional equity and bond allocations for assets that can provide diversification and potential inflation protection. Crypto-linked equities like Galaxy Digital and Hut 8 offer high-beta exposure to the digital asset ecosystem, where adoption trends can amplify returns beyond the underlying price of Bitcoin. On the other side of the alternative asset spectrum, gold miners such as Newmont, SSR Mining, and Gold Fields provide operational leverage to physical gold, which has historically performed well when real interest rates fall, inflation expectations rise, or investors question the stability of fiat currencies. Alpha Picks might be ideal if you're interested in two monthly stock picks of the top "strong buy" quant stocks. 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