Newmont (NYSE:NEM) Upgraded by BMO Capital Markets to "Strong-Buy" Rating

Newmont (NYSE:NEM - Get Free Report) was upgraded by equities researchers at BMO Capital Markets to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report issued on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

NEM has been the topic of a number of other reports. TD Securities lowered their price objective on shares of Newmont from $46.00 to $45.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. UBS Group raised shares of Newmont from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and lifted their target price for the company from $50.00 to $60.00 in a report on Friday, April 11th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on shares of Newmont from $51.00 to $52.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Friday, April 4th. National Bank Financial upgraded Newmont to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, March 21st. Finally, Scotiabank reissued a "sector perform" rating on shares of Newmont in a research note on Monday, April 14th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Newmont presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $55.02.

Newmont Stock Performance

Newmont stock traded down $0.87 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $55.08. 14,364,376 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 9,878,623. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $47.14 and its 200 day simple moving average is $45.07. Newmont has a 12-month low of $36.60 and a 12-month high of $58.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a quick ratio of 1.73 and a current ratio of 1.96. The stock has a market cap of $62.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.41 and a beta of 0.54.

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Newmont news, Director Bruce R. Brook sold 2,077 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.71, for a total value of $90,785.67. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 47,916 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,094,408.36. The trade was a 4.15 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, COO Natascha Viljoen sold 9,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.89, for a total value of $386,010.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 136,967 shares in the company, valued at $5,874,514.63. This trade represents a 6.17 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 19,154 shares of company stock worth $825,678. 0.05% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Newmont

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Van ECK Associates Corp lifted 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 5.2% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 24,697,779 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $919,484,000 after purchasing an additional 1,213,397 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Newmont in the 4th quarter valued at $626,074,000. Northern Trust Corp grew its stake in shares of Newmont by 11.5% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 12,742,155 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $474,263,000 after buying an additional 1,309,177 shares during the period. Finally, Amundi increased its holdings in shares of Newmont by 14.0% during the 4th quarter. Amundi now owns 12,302,579 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $481,400,000 after buying an additional 1,507,708 shares during the last quarter. 68.85% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.