Artisan Partners Limited Partnership Makes New $9.77 Million Investment in AngloGold Ashanti plc (NYSE:AU)

Artisan Partners Limited Partnership bought a new stake in AngloGold Ashanti plc (NYSE:AU - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 423,391 shares of the mining company's stock, valued at approximately $9,772,000. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership owned approximately 0.10% of AngloGold Ashanti at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of AU. Whittier Trust Co. bought a new stake in shares of AngloGold Ashanti in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $25,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew 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 acquiring an additional 796 shares in the last quarter. R Squared Ltd acquired a new position in shares of AngloGold Ashanti during the 4th quarter worth $36,000. Decker Retirement Planning Inc. bought a new position in shares of AngloGold Ashanti during the 4th quarter valued at $69,000. Finally, SBI Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of AngloGold Ashanti in the 4th quarter valued at $82,000. 36.09% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AU has been the topic of several recent research reports. Royal Bank of Canada restated an "outperform" rating and set a $36.00 target price on shares of AngloGold Ashanti in a report on Thursday, February 20th. Scotiabank raised their price objective on AngloGold Ashanti from $30.00 to $34.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on AngloGold Ashanti from $37.00 to $32.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, December 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, AngloGold Ashanti presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $34.00.

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AngloGold Ashanti Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE AU traded down $0.03 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $37.46. 1,172,825 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,545,687. The stock has a market capitalization of $15.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.70 and a beta of 0.92. The company's 50-day moving average price is $32.08 and its 200-day moving average price is $28.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a current ratio of 1.73 and a quick ratio of 1.14. AngloGold Ashanti plc has a 1-year low of $21.65 and a 1-year high of $38.63.

AngloGold Ashanti (NYSE:AU - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 19th. The mining company reported $0.89 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.99 by ($0.10). The firm had revenue of $1.75 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.75 billion. On average, sell-side analysts expect that AngloGold Ashanti plc will post 3.83 earnings per share 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 given a $0.69 dividend. This represents a yield of 2.8%. This is a positive change from AngloGold Ashanti's previous semi-annual dividend of $0.22. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 14th. AngloGold Ashanti's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 43.13%.

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.