Barrick Gold (NYSE:GOLD) Shares Gap Down - Time to Sell?

Shares of Barrick Gold Corp (NYSE:GOLD - Get Free Report) TSE: ABX gapped down prior to trading on Wednesday . The stock had previously closed at $19.97, but opened at $19.01. Barrick Gold shares last traded at $19.00, with a volume of 10,234,754 shares changing hands.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. TD Securities reduced their price target on Barrick Gold from $24.00 to $23.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Bank of America downgraded Barrick Gold from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and reduced their target price for the stock from $21.00 to $18.00 in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Raymond James increased their price target on Barrick Gold from $23.00 to $23.50 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, March 31st. National Bankshares reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Barrick Gold in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Barrick Gold from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, April 5th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $24.05.

Barrick Gold Stock Down 2.2 %

The stock has a 50-day moving average of $18.93 and a 200-day moving average of $17.93. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 2.89 and a quick ratio of 2.15. The firm has a market cap of $32.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.44, a P/E/G ratio of 0.44 and a beta of 0.55.

Barrick Gold (NYSE:GOLD - Get Free Report) TSE: ABX last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The gold and copper producer reported $0.46 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts' consensus estimates of $0.46. Barrick Gold had a return on equity of 6.76% and a net margin of 16.59%. Sell-side analysts predict that Barrick Gold Corp will post 1.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Barrick Gold Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 28th were issued a $0.10 dividend. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.11%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 28th. Barrick Gold's dividend payout ratio is currently 32.52%.

Barrick Gold declared that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, February 12th that permits the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the gold and copper producer to repurchase up to 3.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are usually an indication that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Barrick Gold

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Capital International Investors raised its holdings in shares of Barrick Gold by 136.1% during the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 33,293,792 shares of the gold and copper producer's stock worth $516,055,000 after buying an additional 19,189,830 shares in the last quarter. Causeway Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Barrick Gold during the fourth quarter worth about $172,225,000. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its holdings in shares of Barrick Gold by 17.5% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 64,310,800 shares of the gold and copper producer's stock worth $996,802,000 after acquiring an additional 9,598,292 shares during the last quarter. FIL Ltd boosted its stake in shares of Barrick Gold by 236.7% in the 4th quarter. FIL Ltd now owns 6,815,946 shares of the gold and copper producer's stock valued at $105,692,000 after purchasing an additional 4,791,663 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Capital International Inc. CA bought a new stake in shares of Barrick Gold during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $57,991,000. 62.85% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Barrick Gold

Barrick Gold Corporation is a sector-leading gold and copper producer.  Its shares trade on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol GOLD and on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbol ABX.   In January 2019 Barrick merged with Randgold Resources and in July that year it combined its gold mines in Nevada, USA, with those of Newmont Corporation in a joint venture, Nevada Gold Mines, which is majority-owned and operated by Barrick.