AngloGold Ashanti plc (NYSE:AU) Short Interest Update

AngloGold Ashanti plc (NYSE:AU) was the target of a significant increase in short interest during the month of September. As of September 30th, there was short interest totalling 7,400,000 shares, an increase of 38.1% from the September 15th total of 5,360,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 1,790,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 4.1 days.

AngloGold Ashanti Stock Up 0.6 %

Shares of AngloGold Ashanti stock opened at $27.34 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a quick ratio of 1.19 and a current ratio of 1.83. The business has a 50-day moving average of $28.73 and a two-hundred day moving average of $26.22. AngloGold Ashanti has a 1 year low of $15.60 and a 1 year high of $32.57.

AngloGold Ashanti (NYSE:AU) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The mining company reported $0.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.51 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $1.38 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.23 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.17 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that AngloGold Ashanti will post 2.58 EPS for the current year.

AngloGold Ashanti Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a Semi-Annual dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 13th. Investors of record on Friday, August 30th were paid a $0.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 30th. This is a positive change from AngloGold Ashanti’s previous Semi-Annual dividend of $0.19. This represents a yield of 0.7%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on AU shares. Scotiabank reissued a “sector underperform” rating and issued a $30.00 price target (up previously from $27.00) on shares of AngloGold Ashanti in a research note on Monday, August 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on AngloGold Ashanti from $32.00 to $37.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on shares of AngloGold Ashanti from $28.00 to $34.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of AngloGold Ashanti from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 8th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $33.67.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On AngloGold Ashanti

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Van ECK Associates Corp boosted its position in shares of AngloGold Ashanti by 7.6% during the first quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 27,747,289 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $615,990,000 after buying an additional 1,948,322 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in AngloGold Ashanti by 7.8% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 16,743,697 shares of the mining company’s stock valued at $312,940,000 after acquiring an additional 1,215,741 shares in the last quarter. Barings LLC lifted its stake in AngloGold Ashanti by 395.0% in the 2nd quarter. Barings LLC now owns 1,101,183 shares of the mining company’s stock valued at $27,818,000 after acquiring an additional 878,717 shares in the last quarter. Coronation Fund Managers Ltd. boosted its position in AngloGold Ashanti by 24.3% during the 1st quarter. Coronation Fund Managers Ltd. now owns 2,201,551 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $48,874,000 after acquiring an additional 431,025 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of AngloGold Ashanti by 23.0% during the 4th quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 2,032,491 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $37,987,000 after acquiring an additional 379,701 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 36.09% of the company’s stock.

About AngloGold Ashanti

AngloGold Ashanti plc operates as a gold mining company in Africa, Australia, and the Americas. The company primarily explores for gold, as well as produces silver and sulphuric acid as by-products. Its flagship property is a 100% owned Geita mine located in the Lake Victoria goldfields of the Mwanza region in north-western Tanzania.