Meridian Investment Counsel Inc. Increases Holdings in Barrick Gold Corp (NYSE:GOLD)

Meridian Investment Counsel Inc. increased its holdings in Barrick Gold Corp (NYSE:GOLD - Free Report) TSE: ABX by 38.9% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 65,266 shares of the gold and copper producer's stock after purchasing an additional 18,266 shares during the quarter. Meridian Investment Counsel Inc.'s holdings in Barrick Gold were worth $1,012,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Barrick Gold by 19.9% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 483,613 shares of the gold and copper producer's stock worth $9,630,000 after buying 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 in 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 raised its holdings in 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 worth $12,018,000 after purchasing an additional 161,688 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Legend Financial Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Barrick Gold in the 4th quarter worth about $700,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 62.85% of the company's stock.

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Barrick Gold Stock Up 1.2 %

Barrick Gold stock traded up $0.23 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $19.67. The stock had a trading volume of 25,209,748 shares, compared to its average volume of 21,831,001. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $17.92 and its 200-day moving average price is $18.02. The stock has a market capitalization of $33.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.44 and a beta of 0.58. Barrick Gold Corp has a 12-month low of $15.11 and a 12-month high of $21.35. The company has a quick ratio of 2.15, a current ratio of 2.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14.

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

Barrick Gold Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Friday, February 28th were given a dividend of $0.10 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 28th. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.03%. Barrick Gold's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 32.52%.

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on GOLD shares. UBS Group upgraded shares of Barrick Gold from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $22.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Bank of America lowered Barrick Gold from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $21.00 to $18.00 in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Scotiabank lifted their price target on Barrick Gold from $19.00 to $20.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. National Bank Financial upgraded Barrick Gold to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, March 21st. Finally, Stifel Canada raised shares of Barrick Gold to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 19th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Barrick Gold presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $23.71.

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.