AngloGold Ashanti (NYSE:AU) Shares Gap Up After Analyst Upgrade

AngloGold Ashanti plc (NYSE:AU - Get Free Report) gapped up before the market opened on Tuesday after Scotiabank raised their price target on the stock from $34.00 to $42.00. The stock had previously closed at $42.57, but opened at $43.83. Scotiabank currently has a sector perform rating on the stock. AngloGold Ashanti shares last traded at $43.44, with a volume of 940,366 shares traded.

Other equities analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. StockNews.com raised AngloGold Ashanti from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 3rd. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on AngloGold Ashanti from $39.00 to $41.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, April 4th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, AngloGold Ashanti presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $36.80.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On AngloGold Ashanti

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its stake in AngloGold Ashanti by 2.1% during the 1st quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 11,353 shares of the mining company's stock valued at $424,000 after acquiring an additional 235 shares during the last quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of AngloGold Ashanti by 9.4% in the 4th quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 5,799 shares of the mining company's stock worth $134,000 after buying an additional 500 shares during the last quarter. Forefront Wealth Management Inc. raised its stake in AngloGold Ashanti by 1.7% during the first quarter. Forefront Wealth Management Inc. now owns 38,529 shares of the mining company's stock worth $1,430,000 after acquiring an additional 638 shares during the period. Sprott Inc. raised its position in shares of AngloGold Ashanti by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. Sprott Inc. now owns 91,168 shares of the mining company's stock worth $2,104,000 after purchasing an additional 662 shares during the period. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in AngloGold Ashanti by 210.6% in the fourth quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,174 shares of the mining company's stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 796 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 36.09% of the company's stock.

AngloGold Ashanti Stock Performance

The company has a current ratio of 1.73, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46. The company's 50-day moving average is $34.45 and its two-hundred day moving average is $29.29. The stock has a market capitalization of $18.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.50 and a beta of 0.81.

AngloGold Ashanti (NYSE:AU - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 19th. The mining company reported $0.89 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.99 by ($0.10). The firm had revenue of $1.75 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.75 billion. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that AngloGold Ashanti plc will post 3.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AngloGold Ashanti Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th were issued a $0.69 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 14th. This represents a dividend yield of 2.8%. This is a boost from AngloGold Ashanti's previous semi-annual dividend of $0.22. AngloGold Ashanti's dividend payout ratio is currently 43.13%.

About AngloGold Ashanti

AngloGold Ashanti plc operates as a gold mining company in Africa, Australia, and the Americas. The company primarily explores for gold, as well as produces silver and sulphuric acid as by-products. Its flagship property is a 100% owned Geita mine located in the Lake Victoria goldfields of the Mwanza region in north-western Tanzania.