Barrick Gold Corp (NYSE:GOLD) Short Interest Update

Barrick Gold Corp (NYSE:GOLD) (TSE:ABX) was the target of a large increase in short interest in the month of November. As of November 30th, there was short interest totalling 20,404,300 shares, an increase of 34.2% from the November 15th total of 15,209,700 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 21,546,800 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 0.9 days. Approximately 1.2% of the company’s shares are short sold.

Barrick Gold Stock Performance

NYSE GOLD traded down $0.38 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $16.79. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 13,350,855 shares, compared to its average volume of 21,413,570. Barrick Gold has a 12 month low of $13.76 and a 12 month high of $21.35. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $18.64 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $18.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 2.65 and a quick ratio of 2.06. The company has a market cap of $29.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.47 and a beta of 0.53.

Barrick Gold Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 29th will be issued a dividend of $0.10 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 29th. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.38%. Barrick Gold’s payout ratio is 43.01%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Barrick Gold

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in GOLD. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC increased its position in shares of Barrick Gold by 1.8% during the 2nd quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 66,137 shares of the gold and copper producer’s stock valued at $1,103,000 after purchasing an additional 1,179 shares during the last quarter. ORG Partners LLC bought a new position in Barrick Gold in the second quarter worth approximately $42,000. Blue Trust Inc. raised its position in Barrick Gold by 19.0% in the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 31,305 shares of the gold and copper producer’s stock worth $521,000 after acquiring an additional 4,999 shares during the period. TCW Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Barrick Gold by 47.2% during the 2nd quarter. TCW Group Inc. now owns 294,934 shares of the gold and copper producer’s stock worth $4,919,000 after acquiring an additional 94,589 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James & Associates grew its position in shares of Barrick Gold by 8.0% during the 2nd quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 1,837,227 shares of the gold and copper producer’s stock valued at $30,645,000 after acquiring an additional 135,536 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 62.85% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have issued reports on GOLD. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on Barrick Gold from $21.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 10th. Scotiabank reduced their price objective on Barrick Gold from $24.00 to $23.00 and set a “sector outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, November 25th. Raymond James dropped their target price on Barrick Gold from $26.00 to $25.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, November 25th. UBS Group downgraded Barrick Gold from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their price target for the company from $23.00 to $22.00 in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, TD Securities dropped their price target on shares of Barrick Gold from $26.00 to $25.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $25.60.

About Barrick Gold

Barrick Gold Corporation is a sector-leading gold and copper producer.  Its shares trade on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol GOLD and on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbol ABX.
 
In January 2019 Barrick merged with Randgold Resources and in July that year it combined its gold mines in Nevada, USA, with those of Newmont Corporation in a joint venture, Nevada Gold Mines, which is majority-owned and operated by Barrick.