Savant Capital LLC Takes Position in AngloGold Ashanti plc (NYSE:AU)

Savant Capital LLC bought a new stake in AngloGold Ashanti plc (NYSE:AU - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 10,999 shares of the mining company's stock, valued at approximately $254,000.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Ninety One UK Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of AngloGold Ashanti during the fourth quarter worth $45,043,000. abrdn plc acquired a new stake in shares of AngloGold Ashanti during the fourth quarter worth $843,000. R Squared Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of AngloGold Ashanti during the fourth quarter worth $36,000. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its stake in shares of AngloGold Ashanti by 17.6% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 7,043 shares of the mining company's stock worth $163,000 after buying an additional 1,052 shares during the period. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC lifted its stake in shares of AngloGold Ashanti by 177.9% during the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 13,124 shares of the mining company's stock worth $303,000 after buying an additional 8,401 shares during the period. 36.09% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

AngloGold Ashanti Stock Down 1.2 %

AU traded down $0.39 on Friday, reaching $31.63. The stock had a trading volume of 2,709,866 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,493,383. AngloGold Ashanti plc has a 12-month low of $17.01 and a 12-month high of $33.77. The company has a quick ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 1.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46. The business's 50-day moving average price is $27.42 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $27.65.

AngloGold Ashanti (NYSE:AU - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 19th. The mining company reported $0.89 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.99 by ($0.10). The business had revenue of $1.75 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.75 billion. Equities research analysts expect that AngloGold Ashanti plc will post 3.83 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AngloGold Ashanti Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be issued a $0.69 dividend. This is a boost from AngloGold Ashanti's previous semi-annual dividend of $0.22. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. This represents a yield of 2.8%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on AU shares. Scotiabank upgraded shares of AngloGold Ashanti from a "sector underperform" rating to a "sector perform" rating and set a $30.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of AngloGold Ashanti from $37.00 to $32.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, December 6th. StockNews.com cut shares of AngloGold Ashanti from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $36.00 target price on shares of AngloGold Ashanti in a report on Thursday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, AngloGold Ashanti currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $33.00.

AngloGold Ashanti Company Profile

AngloGold Ashanti plc operates as a gold mining company in Africa, Australia, and the Americas. The company primarily explores for gold, as well as produces silver and sulphuric acid as by-products. Its flagship property is a 100% owned Geita mine located in the Lake Victoria goldfields of the Mwanza region in north-western Tanzania.