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

AngloGold Ashanti PLC (NYSE:AU)’s stock price gapped down prior to trading on Wednesday . The stock had previously closed at $96.20, but opened at $89.66. AngloGold Ashanti shares last traded at $91.2120, with a volume of 1,345,422 shares changing hands.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have issued reports on AU shares. Weiss Ratings raised AngloGold Ashanti from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Thursday, March 12th. Scotiabank reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of AngloGold Ashanti in a report on Wednesday, February 25th. Roth Mkm reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $122.00 target price on shares of AngloGold Ashanti in a research report on Friday, February 20th. Citigroup raised their target price on AngloGold Ashanti from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 20th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded AngloGold Ashanti from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, December 13th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $100.50.

AngloGold Ashanti Trading Down 4.6%

The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $106.30 and a 200-day simple moving average of $86.33. The stock has a market capitalization of $46.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.66 and a beta of 0.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a current ratio of 2.58 and a quick ratio of 1.98.

AngloGold Ashanti (NYSE:AU) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, February 20th. The mining company reported $1.90 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.90. AngloGold Ashanti had a return on equity of 29.70% and a net margin of 26.65%.The company had revenue of $3.07 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.99 billion. As a group, equities analysts expect that AngloGold Ashanti PLC will post 3.83 earnings per share for the current year.

AngloGold Ashanti Cuts Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 27th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 13th will be paid a $0.173 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 13th. This represents a $0.69 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.8%. AngloGold Ashanti’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 133.33%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Corient Private Wealth LLC raised its holdings in shares of AngloGold Ashanti by 28.0% in the fourth quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 22,070 shares of the mining company’s stock valued at $1,882,000 after purchasing an additional 4,825 shares during the last quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd bought a new position in AngloGold Ashanti in the fourth quarter valued at $295,000. Reflection Asset Management acquired a new stake in AngloGold Ashanti in the 4th quarter valued at $42,000. Astoria Portfolio Advisors LLC. acquired a new stake in AngloGold Ashanti in the 4th quarter valued at $266,000. Finally, Mcguire Capital Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in AngloGold Ashanti during the 4th quarter worth about $36,000. 36.09% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.