Franklin Resources Inc. Boosts Holdings in Barrick Gold Corp (NYSE:GOLD)

Franklin Resources Inc. raised its stake in Barrick Gold Corp (NYSE:GOLD - Free Report) TSE: ABX by 5.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,049,908 shares of the gold and copper producer's stock after purchasing an additional 216,394 shares during the quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. owned approximately 0.23% of Barrick Gold worth $62,765,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its position in Barrick Gold by 19.9% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 483,613 shares of the gold and copper producer's stock valued at $9,630,000 after acquiring an additional 80,366 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Barrick Gold by 2.6% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 5,073,717 shares of the gold and copper producer's stock valued at $78,637,000 after acquiring an additional 128,203 shares during the last quarter. Crocodile Capital Partners GmbH increased its position in Barrick Gold by 97.3% during the 4th quarter. Crocodile Capital Partners GmbH now owns 1,460,000 shares of the gold and copper producer's stock valued at $22,630,000 after purchasing an additional 720,000 shares during the period. Chiron Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Barrick Gold by 36.5% in the 3rd quarter. Chiron Investment Management LLC now owns 604,199 shares of the gold and copper producer's stock valued at $12,018,000 after purchasing an additional 161,688 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Legend Financial Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in Barrick Gold in the fourth quarter valued at $700,000. 62.85% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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Barrick Gold Trading Up 2.9 %

Barrick Gold stock traded up $0.51 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $18.15. The company had a trading volume of 8,524,200 shares, compared to its average volume of 23,363,287. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 2.89 and a quick ratio of 2.15. Barrick Gold Corp has a 12-month low of $15.11 and a 12-month high of $21.35. The firm has a market cap of $31.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.74, a P/E/G ratio of 0.44 and a beta of 0.55. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $18.20 and a 200 day moving average price of $17.96.

Barrick Gold (NYSE:GOLD - Get Free Report) TSE: ABX last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The gold and copper producer reported $0.46 earnings per share (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%. Equities analysts forecast that Barrick Gold Corp will post 1.47 earnings per share for the current year.

Barrick Gold Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Friday, February 28th were issued a $0.10 dividend. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.20%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 28th. Barrick Gold's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 32.52%.

Barrick Gold declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase program 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 buy up to 3.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are generally a sign that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently weighed in on GOLD shares. Stifel Canada upgraded shares of Barrick Gold to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 19th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on Barrick Gold from $22.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday. Citigroup reduced their target price on Barrick Gold from $21.00 to $17.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Monday, March 31st. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Barrick Gold from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Saturday. Finally, National Bank Financial upgraded Barrick Gold to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, March 21st. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $23.79.

Barrick Gold 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.