Better Buy: Wheaton Precious Metals vs. Pan American Silver

Pan American Silver (NASDAQ: PAAS) is one of the world's largest primary silver producers, and if you are looking for exposure to that precious metal it's worth a deep dive. But don't stop there, because you can invest in the production of silver and gold without owning a miner. And one of the best ways to do that is with Wheaton Precious Metals (NYSE: WPM), which doesn't operate a single silver or gold mine.

Here's why I think Wheaton is a better choice than Pan American Silver.

There's nothing inherently wrong with Pan American Silver. It has gold and silver mines located throughout the Americas, its production is diversified, with silver accounting for around 50% of revenues, gold 25%, and other metals the rest (including copper, lead, and zinc), it's expecting production to increase over the next few years, and it's been able to cut its costs in half over the last five years, taking all in sustaining costs from $22 an ounce in 2012 to a projected $11 an ounce this year.

Source: Fool.com