Franklin Resources Inc. Trims Stock Holdings in Newmont Co. (NYSE:NEM)

Franklin Resources Inc. lowered its position in Newmont Co. (NYSE:NEM - Free Report) by 7.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,485,091 shares of the basic materials company's stock after selling 123,464 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. owned 0.13% of Newmont worth $55,275,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of NEM. Van ECK Associates Corp raised its holdings in shares of Newmont by 1.6% during the 4th quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 49,747,598 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $1,851,606,000 after acquiring an additional 797,445 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Newmont by 1.4% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 23,484,382 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $1,253,457,000 after purchasing an additional 326,243 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Newmont in the 4th quarter valued at about $626,074,000. Amundi grew its stake in shares of Newmont by 14.0% in the 4th quarter. Amundi now owns 12,302,579 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $481,400,000 after buying an additional 1,507,708 shares during the period. Finally, Ruffer LLP increased its holdings in shares of Newmont by 19.7% during the 4th quarter. Ruffer LLP now owns 7,085,101 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $263,706,000 after buying an additional 1,164,870 shares during the last quarter. 68.85% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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Newmont Stock Down 8.4 %

NEM traded down $4.08 on Friday, hitting $44.25. 21,146,797 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 9,653,406. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $45.34 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $45.33. The company has a current ratio of 1.96, a quick ratio of 1.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30. Newmont Co. has a twelve month low of $36.60 and a twelve month high of $58.72. The company has a market cap of $49.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.41 and a beta of 0.54.

Newmont (NYSE:NEM - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 20th. The basic materials company reported $1.40 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.11 by $0.29. The business had revenue of $5.65 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.32 billion. Newmont had a return on equity of 13.52% and a net margin of 17.92%. On average, equities analysts predict that Newmont Co. will post 3.45 earnings per share for the current year.

Newmont Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 27th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 4th were issued a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 4th. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.26%. Newmont's payout ratio is 34.13%.

Insider Transactions at Newmont

In other news, Director Bruce R. Brook sold 2,077 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.00, for a total transaction of $83,080.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 52,070 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,082,800. The trade was a 3.84 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, COO Natascha Viljoen sold 9,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, January 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.00, for a total transaction of $360,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 145,967 shares in the company, valued at $5,838,680. This trade represents a 5.81 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 33,231 shares of company stock valued at $1,388,758. Insiders own 0.05% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently weighed in on NEM. StockNews.com upgraded Newmont from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, February 24th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on Newmont from $51.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a report on Friday. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on shares of Newmont in a report on Monday, January 13th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $47.20 price objective on the stock. TD Securities lowered their target price on shares of Newmont from $46.00 to $45.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Finally, National Bank Financial raised shares of Newmont to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, March 21st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $54.09.

Newmont Company Profile

Newmont Corporation engages in the production and exploration of gold. It also explores for copper, silver, zinc, and lead. The company has operations and/or assets in the United States, Canada, Mexico, Dominican Republic, Peru, Suriname, Argentina, Chile, Australia, Papua New Guinea, Ecuador, Fiji, and Ghana.