AngloGold Ashanti (NYSE:AU) Shares Gap Up - Still a Buy?

AngloGold Ashanti plc (NYSE:AU - Get Free Report)'s stock price gapped up before the market opened on Tuesday . The stock had previously closed at $37.12, but opened at $38.00. AngloGold Ashanti shares last traded at $37.90, with a volume of 967,399 shares.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on AU shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on shares of AngloGold Ashanti from $37.00 to $32.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, December 6th. StockNews.com raised AngloGold Ashanti from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday. 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 note on Friday. Finally, Scotiabank lifted their price target on AngloGold Ashanti from $30.00 to $34.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $35.25.

AngloGold Ashanti Stock Down 9.3 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a current ratio of 1.73 and a quick ratio of 1.14. The stock has a market cap of $14.08 billion, a PE ratio of 10.48 and a beta of 0.81. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $32.56 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $28.45.

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AngloGold Ashanti (NYSE:AU - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 19th. The mining company reported $0.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.99 by ($0.10). The business had revenue of $1.75 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.75 billion. Analysts expect that AngloGold Ashanti plc will post 3.83 EPS for the current year.

AngloGold Ashanti Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 28th. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th were issued a $0.69 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 14th. This represents a 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 (DPR) is currently 43.13%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On AngloGold Ashanti

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in AngloGold Ashanti by 22.9% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 20,857,324 shares of the mining company's stock valued at $467,795,000 after acquiring an additional 3,882,283 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in shares of AngloGold Ashanti by 274.8% in the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 5,133,744 shares of the mining company's stock worth $118,448,000 after purchasing an additional 3,764,165 shares during the period. Marshall Wace LLP boosted its holdings in shares of AngloGold Ashanti by 3,767.1% in the fourth quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 2,751,410 shares of the mining company's stock worth $63,503,000 after buying an additional 2,680,261 shares during the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp grew its position in AngloGold Ashanti by 10.9% during the fourth quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 25,411,814 shares of the mining company's stock valued at $586,504,000 after buying an additional 2,491,130 shares during the period. Finally, Carrhae Capital LLP increased its holdings in AngloGold Ashanti by 170.0% during the fourth quarter. Carrhae Capital LLP now owns 3,459,193 shares of the mining company's stock valued at $79,838,000 after buying an additional 2,177,783 shares during the last quarter. 36.09% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

AngloGold Ashanti Company Profile

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.