AngloGold Ashanti (NYSE:AU) Shares Gap Down – Here’s What Happened

AngloGold Ashanti PLC (NYSE:AU) shares gapped down before the market opened on Wednesday . The stock had previously closed at $84.43, but opened at $79.67. AngloGold Ashanti shares last traded at $80.8420, with a volume of 860,194 shares.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have commented on AU. Citigroup boosted their target price on AngloGold Ashanti from $120.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Wall Street Zen downgraded AngloGold Ashanti from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday. Zacks Research downgraded AngloGold Ashanti from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, February 23rd. Weiss Ratings downgraded AngloGold Ashanti from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Monday, June 1st. Finally, Roth Mkm reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $121.00 price target on shares of AngloGold Ashanti in a research note on Monday, May 11th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, AngloGold Ashanti has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $114.00.

AngloGold Ashanti Stock Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $40.17 billion, a PE ratio of 11.67 and a beta of 0.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19, a quick ratio of 2.11 and a current ratio of 2.71. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $97.89 and its 200-day simple moving average is $97.24.

AngloGold Ashanti (NYSE:AU) last released its earnings results on Friday, May 8th. The mining company reported $2.52 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.27 by $0.25. The firm had revenue of $3.24 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.26 billion. AngloGold Ashanti had a return on equity of 36.41% and a net margin of 31.11%. As a group, equities analysts predict that AngloGold Ashanti PLC will post 9.26 earnings per share for the current year.

AngloGold Ashanti Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 12th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 29th will be issued a dividend of $1.16 per share. This represents a $4.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.8%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 29th. This is an increase from AngloGold Ashanti’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.17. AngloGold Ashanti’s payout ratio is currently 68.04%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Ascentis Independent Advisors purchased a new position in shares of AngloGold Ashanti during the 1st quarter worth about $26,000. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT purchased a new position in shares of AngloGold Ashanti during the 4th quarter worth about $31,000. Garton & Associates Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of AngloGold Ashanti during the 4th quarter worth about $34,000. Mcguire Capital Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of AngloGold Ashanti during the 4th quarter worth about $36,000. Finally, Global Retirement Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of AngloGold Ashanti by 454.1% during the 4th quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 471 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $40,000 after acquiring an additional 386 shares during the period. 36.09% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

AngloGold Ashanti Company Profile

AngloGold Ashanti is a global gold mining company engaged in the exploration, development, production, processing and sale of gold. Headquartered in Johannesburg, South Africa, the company’s core activities span the full mining value chain from greenfield exploration and mine development through to ore processing and rehabilitation. Gold is the primary commodity produced, with individual operations sometimes yielding other by‑products depending on local geology and processing methods.

The company was formed in 2004 through the merger of AngloGold and Ashanti Goldfields, creating a diversified international gold producer.