Agnico Eagle Mines Limited (NYSE:AEM) Short Interest Up 22.4% in February

Agnico Eagle Mines Limited (NYSE:AEM) (TSE:AEM) saw a significant growth in short interest during the month of February. As of February 28th, there was short interest totalling 6,400,000 shares, a growth of 22.4% from the February 13th total of 5,230,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 2,110,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 3.0 days. Currently, 1.3% of the shares of the company are sold short.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. StockNews.com lowered Agnico Eagle Mines from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. TD Securities dropped their target price on shares of Agnico Eagle Mines from $108.00 to $106.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on Agnico Eagle Mines from $96.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Scotiabank upped their price target on Agnico Eagle Mines from $103.00 to $105.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Finally, Raymond James set a $105.00 price target on shares of Agnico Eagle Mines and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $95.78.

Agnico Eagle Mines Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:AEM traded down $0.62 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $105.20. 939,159 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,331,009. Agnico Eagle Mines has a one year low of $54.02 and a one year high of $107.88. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $94.49 and a 200 day moving average of $86.40. The company has a market cap of $52.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.80, a P/E/G ratio of 0.66 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a current ratio of 1.86.

Agnico Eagle Mines (NYSE:AEM) (TSE:AEM) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The mining company reported $1.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.70 by ($0.44). Agnico Eagle Mines had a net margin of 22.88% and a return on equity of 10.45%. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Agnico Eagle Mines will post 4.63 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Agnico Eagle Mines Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 28th were given a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.52%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 28th. Agnico Eagle Mines’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 42.33%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Agnico Eagle Mines

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Van ECK Associates Corp boosted its position in Agnico Eagle Mines by 3.6% in the fourth quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 22,322,859 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $1,745,858,000 after purchasing an additional 778,919 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Agnico Eagle Mines by 1.7% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 19,865,285 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $1,554,180,000 after purchasing an additional 331,087 shares during the period. FMR LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Agnico Eagle Mines by 43.5% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 15,061,244 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $1,213,311,000 after buying an additional 4,562,005 shares during the last quarter. Capital World Investors grew its position in Agnico Eagle Mines by 41.9% during the fourth quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 13,952,061 shares of the mining company’s stock valued at $1,091,550,000 after buying an additional 4,121,164 shares during the period. Finally, Deutsche Bank AG increased its holdings in Agnico Eagle Mines by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 11,916,739 shares of the mining company’s stock valued at $932,008,000 after buying an additional 87,410 shares during the last quarter. 68.34% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Agnico Eagle Mines Company Profile

Agnico Eagle Mines Limited, a gold mining company, exploration, development, and production of precious metals. It explores for gold. The company's mines are located in Canada, Australia, Finland and Mexico, with exploration and development activities in Canada, Australia, Europe, Latin America, and the United States.