Barrick Gold (NYSE:GOLD) Trading Up 0.4% - Should You Buy?

Barrick Gold Corp (NYSE:GOLD - Get Free Report) TSE: ABX's stock price traded up 0.4% on Monday . The company traded as high as $19.20 and last traded at $19.13. 3,733,467 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 83% from the average session volume of 21,548,939 shares. The stock had previously closed at $19.05.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently commented on GOLD shares. BMO Capital Markets started coverage on shares of Barrick Gold in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. They issued a "market perform" rating for the company. Raymond James upped their target price on Barrick Gold from $23.00 to $23.50 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, March 31st. National Bank Financial raised Barrick Gold to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, March 21st. Stifel Canada upgraded Barrick Gold to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 19th. Finally, Scotiabank raised their target price on Barrick Gold from $20.00 to $22.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $24.05.

Barrick Gold Stock Up 0.9 %

The company has a market capitalization of $33.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.44 and a beta of 0.55. The company has a quick ratio of 2.15, a current ratio of 2.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $18.95 and a 200-day moving average price of $17.90.

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

Barrick Gold Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 28th were issued a $0.10 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 28th. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.08%. Barrick Gold's payout ratio is currently 32.52%.

Barrick Gold declared that its board has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, February 12th that allows the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the gold and copper producer to purchase up to 3.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically a sign that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Barrick Gold

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its position in shares of Barrick Gold by 2.1% in the fourth quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 76,299,834 shares of the gold and copper producer's stock worth $1,182,641,000 after purchasing an additional 1,563,361 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Barrick Gold by 1.8% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 68,358,533 shares of the gold and copper producer's stock valued at $1,060,036,000 after buying an additional 1,195,585 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its holdings in shares of Barrick Gold by 17.5% during the 4th 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 acquiring an additional 9,598,292 shares in the last quarter. Capital International Investors raised its holdings in shares of Barrick Gold by 136.1% during the fourth quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 33,293,792 shares of the gold and copper producer's stock worth $516,055,000 after acquiring an additional 19,189,830 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mackenzie Financial Corp boosted its position in Barrick Gold by 1.9% during the fourth quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 15,318,376 shares of the gold and copper producer's stock valued at $237,280,000 after purchasing an additional 278,292 shares during the last quarter. 62.85% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Barrick Gold Company Profile

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.

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