Newmont Co. (NYSE:NEM) Short Interest Up 31.3% in February

Newmont Co. (NYSE:NEM - Get Free Report) was the recipient of a significant increase in short interest during the month of February. As of February 15th, there was short interest totalling 21,640,000 shares, an increase of 31.3% from the January 31st total of 16,480,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 9,840,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.2 days. Approximately 1.9% of the company's shares are short sold.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

NEM has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. StockNews.com raised shares of Newmont from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, February 24th. Raymond James decreased their target price on Newmont from $62.00 to $59.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, November 25th. CLSA assumed coverage on Newmont in a report on Friday, November 29th. They issued an "underperform" rating for the company. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on Newmont from $47.00 to $52.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, Scotiabank lowered their target price on Newmont from $52.00 to $50.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $53.16.

Newmont Stock Up 0.3 %

Shares of NYSE:NEM traded up $0.15 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $42.51. The company had a trading volume of 11,855,035 shares, compared to its average volume of 9,751,259. Newmont has a 1-year low of $33.22 and a 1-year high of $58.72. The stock has a market cap of $47.90 billion, a PE ratio of 14.51, a P/E/G ratio of 0.41 and a beta of 0.52. The company has a quick ratio of 1.73, a current ratio of 1.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30. The business's 50 day moving average price is $42.18 and its 200 day moving average price is $46.15.

Newmont (NYSE:NEM - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The basic materials company reported $1.40 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.11 by $0.29. The firm had revenue of $5.65 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.32 billion. Newmont had a return on equity of 13.52% and a net margin of 17.92%. Research analysts forecast that Newmont will post 3.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Newmont Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 27th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 4th will be paid a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.35%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 4th. Newmont's dividend payout ratio is currently 34.13%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Newmont

In other Newmont news, COO Natascha Viljoen sold 9,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.00, for a total transaction of $360,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 145,967 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,838,680. This trade represents a 5.81 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Peter Toth sold 3,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.89, for a total value of $128,670.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 79,596 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,413,872.44. The trade was a 3.63 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 28,154 shares of company stock valued at $1,166,843. 0.06% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Newmont in the 4th quarter valued at about $626,074,000. Voloridge Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Newmont in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $92,693,000. Capital Research Global Investors boosted its stake in shares of Newmont by 70.7% during the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 5,644,953 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $210,105,000 after acquiring an additional 2,338,953 shares during the period. Renaissance Technologies LLC bought a new position in shares of Newmont during the 4th quarter worth approximately $76,281,000. Finally, Invesco Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of Newmont by 23.9% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 10,520,354 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $391,568,000 after acquiring an additional 2,028,150 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 68.85% of the company's stock.

About Newmont

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.

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