Hussman Strategic Advisors Inc. Sells 433,500 Shares of Barrick Gold Corp (NYSE:GOLD)

Hussman Strategic Advisors Inc. decreased its holdings in Barrick Gold Corp (NYSE:GOLD - Free Report) TSE: ABX by 68.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 204,000 shares of the gold and copper producer's stock after selling 433,500 shares during the period. Barrick Gold comprises 0.9% of Hussman Strategic Advisors Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 13th largest holding. Hussman Strategic Advisors Inc.'s holdings in Barrick Gold were worth $3,162,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in GOLD. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC increased its position in Barrick Gold by 198.1% in the 3rd quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 1,407 shares of the gold and copper producer's stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 935 shares during the last quarter. Eastern Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Barrick Gold during the 3rd quarter valued at about $32,000. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Barrick Gold by 451.7% in the third quarter. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,909 shares of the gold and copper producer's stock worth $38,000 after buying an additional 1,563 shares during the last quarter. BNP Paribas raised its position in Barrick Gold by 221.7% during the third quarter. BNP Paribas now owns 3,066 shares of the gold and copper producer's stock valued at $62,000 after acquiring an additional 2,113 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. acquired a new stake in Barrick Gold in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $65,000. 62.85% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Barrick Gold Price Performance

Shares of Barrick Gold stock traded down $0.52 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $18.31. 24,471,890 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 22,571,750. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $16.35 and a 200-day simple moving average of $18.18. Barrick Gold Corp has a 52 week low of $14.27 and a 52 week high of $21.35. The firm has a market cap of $31.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.88, a PEG ratio of 0.44 and a beta of 0.55. 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 (NYSE:GOLD - Get Free Report) TSE: ABX last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The gold and copper producer reported $0.46 earnings per share 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%. Research analysts forecast that Barrick Gold Corp will post 1.47 earnings per share for the current year.

Barrick Gold Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 28th will be issued a $0.10 dividend. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.19%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 28th. Barrick Gold's payout ratio is currently 32.52%.

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on GOLD. Raymond James cut their price target on shares of Barrick Gold from $25.00 to $24.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 7th. Cibc World Mkts lowered Barrick Gold from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, November 25th. UBS Group lowered Barrick Gold from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $23.00 to $22.00 in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Scotiabank upped their price target on shares of Barrick Gold from $19.00 to $20.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Citigroup dropped their target price on shares of Barrick Gold from $23.00 to $17.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $23.75.

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.