Sandstorm Gold (NYSE:SAND) Sets New 12-Month High - Still a Buy?

Sandstorm Gold Ltd. (NYSE:SAND - Get Free Report)'s stock price reached a new 52-week high during trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $6.42 and last traded at $6.41, with a volume of 2103351 shares. The stock had previously closed at $6.12.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

SAND has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. CIBC increased their target price on Sandstorm Gold from $9.00 to $9.50 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 10th. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price target on Sandstorm Gold from $6.50 to $6.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, September 10th. HC Wainwright raised their price target on Sandstorm Gold from $11.00 to $11.50 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, August 5th. Finally, StockNews.com raised Sandstorm Gold from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, September 27th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $8.25.

Sandstorm Gold Trading Up 6.0 %

The company has a market capitalization of $1.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 64.86 and a beta of 1.14. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $5.82 and a 200-day moving average price of $5.65. The company has a current ratio of 1.99, a quick ratio of 1.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27.

Sandstorm Gold (NYSE:SAND - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The company reported $0.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.02 by $0.01. Sandstorm Gold had a return on equity of 2.06% and a net margin of 17.55%. The company had revenue of $41.37 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $40.50 million. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.01 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Sandstorm Gold Ltd. will post 0.09 EPS for the current year.

Sandstorm Gold Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 25th. Investors of record on Tuesday, October 15th will be issued a $0.015 dividend. This represents a $0.06 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.93%. This is a boost from Sandstorm Gold's previous quarterly dividend of $0.01. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, October 15th. Sandstorm Gold's payout ratio is presently 60.01%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Sandstorm Gold

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Boston Partners acquired a new stake in shares of Sandstorm Gold in the first quarter worth $1,902,000. Squarepoint Ops LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Sandstorm Gold in the second quarter worth $606,000. Clearbridge Investments LLC boosted its position in shares of Sandstorm Gold by 48.1% in the first quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 384,921 shares of the company's stock worth $2,021,000 after buying an additional 125,096 shares during the period. Helikon Investments Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Sandstorm Gold in the first quarter worth $6,771,000. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its position in shares of Sandstorm Gold by 42.2% in the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,149,232 shares of the company's stock worth $17,162,000 after buying an additional 935,005 shares during the period. 51.97% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Sandstorm Gold Company Profile

Sandstorm Gold Ltd. operates as a gold royalty company. The company focuses on acquiring royalties and gold and other metals purchase agreements from companies that have advanced stage operating mines. It offers upfront payments for companies to acquire a stream and receives the right to purchase a percentage of a mine's production for the life of the mine.