Defense, oil, and turbulent times - Silver at USD 150? Investors eye Airbus, Silver Viper, OHB, Rheinmetall, and RENK

Silver Viper - Strategic deal with Fresnillo strengthens portfolio

Rockets in the Middle East are causing high uncertainty on the commodity markets and drawing the attention of many investors back to precious metals as a strategic asset class. In such phases, stable mining regions such as Mexico are back in focus, and Canadian explorer Silver Viper Minerals is operating just there. There is good news here, as the company has undergone remarkable development in recent months, evolving from a classic single-project company to an exploration company with several promising properties.

Particularly significant was the acquisition of the Coneto project in early 2026, which was previously part of Fresnillo's portfolio, the world's largest primary silver producer. The transaction made Fresnillo a strategic shareholder, a positive endorsement of the geological potential of the projects. The Coneto area covers approximately 5,000 hectares in a historic mining district with more than 40 known ore veins. Silver Viper's goal is to systematically expand the historic structures using modern exploration methods and define new resources. Silver investors can therefore expect significant news flow in the coming months. At the same time, the La Virginia project in the state of Sonora remains the company's flagship project. High-grade gold and silver mineralization has already been discovered there in the past, including sections with exceptionally high metal grades. Such high-grade zones are becoming increasingly important, especially in times of rising production costs, as they have the potential to enable economically attractive mining. The plan is to significantly expand the existing resource and identify new mineralized structures.

Silver Viper has also made important financial progress recently. A successfully placed capital increase of approximately CAD 17 million significantly strengthened the liquidity base and enabled the company to advance several exploration programs simultaneously. In addition, the management team has been strengthened with experienced finance and capital market experts to support the company's further development. The share price has performed well over the past 6 months, rising by more than 100%, and over a 2-year period, it has even peaked at 800% growth. Dynamic investors now have another opportunity to enter at slightly lower levels. The story remains highly interesting!

Below, CEO Steve Cope discusses the further exploration strategy in Mexico in his presentation from the recent 18th International Investment Forum.

https://youtu.be/8XvydXs-waA

Airbus and Rheinmetall – A joint satellite project with OHB

Now the Europeans are playing Elon Musk. According to reports, Airbus, Rheinmetall, and OHB plan to implement a joint satellite network for the German Armed Forces. This would represent a major step toward strengthening defense capabilities. Instead of competing, they decided to tackle the billion-dollar project together in the service of the cause, Der Spiegel reported over the weekend. According to the report, the companies informed the German Armed Forces Procurement Office of the planned cooperation after the authority had actually asked them to submit individual bids. From the German Armed Forces' point of view, the merger is definitely advantageous, as it means that delivery can be hoped for even with such an ambitious project. The Procurement Office can breathe a sigh of relief, as the usual legal battle seems to be off the table and cooperation is now underway. Airbus and OHB are responsible for aerospace, while Düsseldorf-based arms manufacturer Rheinmetall is to take care of networking the weapon systems on the ground, at sea, and in the air.

Investors should be pleased about the new momentum in German defense technology procurement, as the share of imported systems is now likely to decline and the generous margins for military technology could be achieved in Europe. The current price correction at Airbus to around EUR 171 and at Rheinmetall to below EUR 1,600 in the short term fits into the current picture. After generous profits over the last two years, investors currently have a need for hedging and a tendency to build up liquidity. After all, no one really knows what news will arrive from the Middle East tomorrow. Risk-conscious investors are buying up shares, as the first brave souls at OHB have already done at early morning prices of around EUR 240!

RENK – Analysts remain positive

Finally, let's turn to RENK. In recent reports, we have repeatedly pointed out that the share price was overvalued in the range above EUR 70. With the presentation of the annual figures for 2025, the still hesitant implementation of growth was confirmed, and the share price fell back to around EUR 50. De facto, the RENK Group generated revenue of around EUR 1.37 billion, which is about 20% more than in 2024. Adjusted consolidated net income was around EUR 142 million, while order intake reached a total of EUR 1.57 billion. The order backlog was also outstanding, reaching a record level of around EUR 6.7 billion. The main driver was the defense business, which accounted for around 74% of revenue. Now, RENK must prove that it can deliver the operational performance in the medium term. 14 out of 16 experts on the LSEG platform are convinced of this and expect an average 12-month price target of EUR 70.50. The catch-up rally can therefore start at today's price of EUR 56. Investors should only take into account that the price-to-earnings ratio is almost 4 as of 2026. That is ambitious!

The stock market is currently taking no prisoners. While commodity stocks are strongly making up for their multi-year lag in the current scarcity cycle, defense stocks are undergoing corrections after delivering significantly higher returns than the overall market over the past two years. Investors now have the opportunity to rebalance their portfolios.