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

AngloGold Ashanti PLC (NYSE:AU)’s stock price gapped down before the market opened on Monday . The stock had previously closed at $91.25, but opened at $86.25. AngloGold Ashanti shares last traded at $84.60, with a volume of 654,853 shares.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AU has been the subject of a number of research reports. Wall Street Zen upgraded AngloGold Ashanti from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, December 13th. Scotiabank raised their target price on AngloGold Ashanti from $90.00 to $92.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of AngloGold Ashanti from $128.00 to $131.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 3rd. Zacks Research downgraded shares of AngloGold Ashanti from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 23rd. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of AngloGold Ashanti from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Friday, October 24th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, AngloGold Ashanti currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $86.00.

AngloGold Ashanti Price Performance

The business has a fifty day moving average price of $78.97 and a 200 day moving average price of $64.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a current ratio of 2.58 and a quick ratio of 1.98. The company has a market capitalization of $35.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.80 and a beta of 0.58.

AngloGold Ashanti (NYSE:AU) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, November 12th. The mining company reported $1.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.34 by ($0.02). The company had revenue of $2.42 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.53 billion. AngloGold Ashanti had a net margin of 26.25% and a return on equity of 24.01%. On average, research analysts expect that AngloGold Ashanti PLC will post 3.83 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AngloGold Ashanti Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 12th. Investors of record on Friday, November 28th were paid a dividend of $0.91 per share. This represents a $3.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.3%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 28th. AngloGold Ashanti’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 80.18%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On AngloGold Ashanti

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in AU. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of AngloGold Ashanti in the 3rd quarter worth $25,000. Financial Management Professionals Inc. acquired a new position in AngloGold Ashanti during the second quarter worth about $30,000. UMB Bank n.a. raised its position in AngloGold Ashanti by 129.0% in the third quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 490 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 276 shares in the last quarter. Optimum Investment Advisors acquired a new stake in AngloGold Ashanti in the 3rd quarter valued at about $35,000. Finally, Ancora Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in AngloGold Ashanti in the 3rd quarter valued at about $35,000. 36.09% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About AngloGold Ashanti

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.