AngloGold Ashanti (NYSE:AU) Shares Gap Up – Time to Buy?

AngloGold Ashanti plc (NYSE:AU)’s share price gapped up prior to trading on Tuesday . The stock had previously closed at $37.12, but opened at $38.00. AngloGold Ashanti shares last traded at $37.90, with a volume of 967,399 shares.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and set a $36.00 target price on shares of AngloGold Ashanti in a research report on Thursday, February 20th. Scotiabank upped their price objective on AngloGold Ashanti from $30.00 to $34.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on AngloGold Ashanti from $37.00 to $32.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, December 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $34.00.

AngloGold Ashanti Stock Up 2.7 %

The stock has a market cap of $16.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.91 and a beta of 0.92. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $31.89 and its 200-day moving average price is $28.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a current ratio of 1.73.

AngloGold Ashanti (NYSE:AU) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 19th. The mining company reported $0.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.99 by ($0.10). The business had revenue of $1.75 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.75 billion. Equities analysts forecast that AngloGold Ashanti plc will post 3.83 EPS for the current year.

AngloGold Ashanti Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th were given a $0.69 dividend. This represents a yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 14th. This is an increase from AngloGold Ashanti’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.22. AngloGold Ashanti’s dividend payout ratio is 43.13%.

Institutional Trading of AngloGold Ashanti

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Whittier Trust Co. purchased a new position in AngloGold Ashanti in the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in AngloGold Ashanti by 210.6% in the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,174 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 796 shares in the last quarter. Hara Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of AngloGold Ashanti during the fourth quarter worth approximately $29,000. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of AngloGold Ashanti during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Finally, R Squared Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of AngloGold Ashanti in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $36,000. 36.09% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.