Centerra Gold (NYSE:CGAU) Trading Up 7.4% Following Earnings Beat

Centerra Gold Inc. (NYSE:CGAU) shares traded up 7.4% during mid-day trading on Wednesday following a better than expected earnings announcement. The company traded as high as $17.13 and last traded at $17.2550. 1,170,394 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 37% from the average daily volume of 1,853,333 shares. The stock had previously closed at $16.07.

The company reported $0.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.38 by $0.01. Centerra Gold had a return on equity of 14.90% and a net margin of 40.32%.The company had revenue of $442.71 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $394.27 million.

Centerra Gold Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 2nd. Investors of record on Wednesday, August 19th will be given a dividend of $0.07 per share. This represents a $0.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, August 19th. Centerra Gold’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 6.77%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on CGAU shares. Scotiabank reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Centerra Gold in a research note on Tuesday, July 7th. Wall Street Zen lowered Centerra Gold from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $17.50.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Centerra Gold

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of CGAU. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Centerra Gold by 57.2% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 13,344,727 shares of the company’s stock worth $84,739,000 after buying an additional 4,853,494 shares in the last quarter. Donald Smith & CO. Inc. lifted its stake in Centerra Gold by 21.8% in the fourth quarter. Donald Smith & CO. Inc. now owns 14,158,116 shares of the company’s stock valued at $203,452,000 after buying an additional 2,535,492 shares during the last quarter. FIL Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Centerra Gold in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $35,991,000. Millennium Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Centerra Gold by 828.0% in the third quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 2,372,671 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,435,000 after acquiring an additional 2,116,991 shares during the period. Finally, Verbena Value LP purchased a new position in shares of Centerra Gold during the fourth quarter worth approximately $23,153,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 55.40% of the company’s stock.

Centerra Gold Trading Up 6.4%

The business’s 50-day moving average price is $16.28 and its 200-day moving average price is $17.49. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.39 billion, a PE ratio of 5.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.62 and a beta of 0.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a current ratio of 2.41 and a quick ratio of 1.60.

Centerra Gold Company Profile

Centerra Gold Inc is a gold mining company incorporated in Canada and headquartered in Toronto. The company specializes in the exploration, development and operation of precious metals properties, with a focus on gold production. Centerra’s portfolio includes the Mount Milligan mine in British Columbia, Canada, and the Otjikoto mine in Namibia. Both operations produce gold and copper concentrates and employ modern mining methods and processing facilities to optimize recovery rates and minimize environmental impact.

In addition to its producing assets, Centerra is advancing the development of its Greenstone Gold Project in Ontario, Canada, which, upon completion, is expected to become one of Canada’s largest gold mines.