Barrick Gold (NYSE:GOLD) Shares Down 4.3% - What's Next?

Barrick Gold Corp (NYSE:GOLD - Get Free Report) TSE: ABX's stock price traded down 4.3% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $18.79 and last traded at $19.11. 17,353,246 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 20% from the average session volume of 21,678,928 shares. The stock had previously closed at $19.97.

Analyst Ratings Changes

GOLD has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Citigroup reduced their price target on Barrick Gold from $21.00 to $17.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, March 31st. National Bank Financial upgraded shares of Barrick Gold to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, March 21st. BMO Capital Markets began coverage on shares of Barrick Gold in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. They issued a "market perform" rating on the stock. UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Barrick Gold from $22.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Finally, Raymond James lifted their target price on Barrick Gold from $23.00 to $23.50 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, March 31st. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Barrick Gold has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $24.05.

Barrick Gold Stock Down 2.3 %

The firm has a market cap of $32.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.40, a P/E/G ratio of 0.44 and a beta of 0.55. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $18.93 and a 200-day simple moving average of $17.93. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a quick ratio of 2.15 and a current ratio of 2.89.

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

Barrick Gold Dividend Announcement

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

Barrick Gold announced that its board has initiated a stock buyback plan on Wednesday, February 12th that permits the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the gold and copper producer to purchase up to 3.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are often a sign that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

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

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.