Goldman Sachs buysSo who are these GS buys we speak of?The...

Goldman Sachs buysSo who are these GS buys we speak of?The company’s three picks are Evolution Mining (ASX:EVN), Regis Resources (ASX:RRL) and Gold Road Resources (ASX:GOR), the former on its copper upside and the latter on a net asset value discount to its peers.Initiated alongside them with neutral ratings are Northern Star Resources (ASX:NST), which will become Australia’s largest standalone gold miner once Newmont’s Newcrest takeover completes with a planned 2Mozpa run rate from 2026 on, Mark Clark’s low-grade supremo Capricorn Metals (ASX:CMM) and the gold developer everyone wants or wants to be, De Grey Mining (ASXEG).GS’s boffins say they prefer near-term margins over long-term ounces when it comes to picking their gold stocks.Evolution and Capricorn are typically strong on costs, with credits from Evolution’s Ernest Henry copper mine helping bring down its all-in sustaining costs, while both Evolution and Regis should see margins grow as their hedges clear.Gold producer hedges are a way for miners to manage risk.Hedging involves a gold producer forward selling a portion of future gold production at a fixed price to lock in guaranteed revenue, rather than taking its chances with the spot price if it falls.Regis’ hedges, set at a time when gold prices were far, far lower than they are today and Australian to US dollar exchange rates much higher, are some of the most onerous in the market, as *’s Reuben Adams breaks down here.“We prefer near-term margins/returns over long-term ounces in the Australian gold sector, and assets with less execution risk. EVN has the strongest near-term EBITDA growth in the sector, supported by copper production/pricing,” Nicolaci and team say.