Centerra Gold (NYSE:CGAU) Shares Up 4.6% – Time to Buy?

Shares of Centerra Gold Inc. (NYSE:CGAU) traded up 4.6% during trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $6.48 and last traded at $6.38. 140,891 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 82% from the average session volume of 779,367 shares. The stock had previously closed at $6.10.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

CGAU has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. CIBC reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of Centerra Gold in a research report on Thursday, March 20th. Scotiabank lowered their price target on shares of Centerra Gold from $10.00 to $9.00 and set a “sector outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 15th. National Bank Financial upgraded Centerra Gold to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, March 21st. Desjardins downgraded Centerra Gold from a “moderate buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Cormark downgraded Centerra Gold from a “moderate buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $11.00.

Centerra Gold Stock Performance

The firm has a market cap of $1.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.43 and a beta of 0.92. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $6.15 and its 200-day moving average is $6.34.

Centerra Gold (NYSE:CGAU) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The company reported $0.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.20 by ($0.03). The company had revenue of $302.40 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $316.92 million. Centerra Gold had a return on equity of 8.83% and a net margin of 6.62%. As a group, research analysts predict that Centerra Gold Inc. will post 0.59 EPS for the current year.

Centerra Gold Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 27th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 13th will be issued a dividend of $0.07 per share. This represents a $0.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.46%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 13th. This is an increase from Centerra Gold’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.05. Centerra Gold’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 52.78%.

Institutional Trading of Centerra Gold

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of CGAU. Donald Smith & CO. Inc. raised its holdings in Centerra Gold by 30.1% in the 4th quarter. Donald Smith & CO. Inc. now owns 8,723,060 shares of the company’s stock worth $49,634,000 after acquiring an additional 2,017,756 shares during the period. Amundi grew its position in shares of Centerra Gold by 168.6% in the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 2,628,623 shares of the company’s stock valued at $15,377,000 after purchasing an additional 1,650,160 shares during the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can increased its stake in shares of Centerra Gold by 59.0% in the third quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 3,869,035 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,690,000 after purchasing an additional 1,435,794 shares during the period. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership lifted its position in shares of Centerra Gold by 24.1% during the 4th quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 5,808,773 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,028,000 after purchasing an additional 1,126,825 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Man Group plc boosted its stake in Centerra Gold by 43.2% during the 4th quarter. Man Group plc now owns 3,038,739 shares of the company’s stock valued at $17,283,000 after purchasing an additional 916,255 shares during the period. 55.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Centerra Gold

Centerra Gold Inc, a gold mining company, engages in the acquisition, exploration, development, and operation of gold and copper properties in North America, Turkey, and internationally. The company explores for gold, copper, and molybdenum deposits. Its flagship projects are the 100% owned Mount Milligan gold-copper mine located in British Columbia, Canada; and the Öksüt gold mine located in Turkey.