Barrick Gold Corp (NYSE:GOLD) Stock Position Cut by Schroder Investment Management Group

Schroder Investment Management Group trimmed its position in Barrick Gold Corp (NYSE:GOLD - Free Report) TSE: ABX by 58.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 757,490 shares of the gold and copper producer's stock after selling 1,068,330 shares during the quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group's holdings in Barrick Gold were worth $11,711,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Crowley Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Barrick Gold in the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. First Horizon Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Barrick Gold by 619.7% during the 4th quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 3,073 shares of the gold and copper producer's stock valued at $48,000 after buying an additional 2,646 shares during the period. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. acquired a new position in Barrick Gold during the 4th quarter worth approximately $65,000. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC lifted its position in Barrick Gold by 196.9% during the 4th quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 4,178 shares of the gold and copper producer's stock worth $65,000 after acquiring an additional 2,771 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Principal Securities Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Barrick Gold by 119.4% in the fourth quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 4,848 shares of the gold and copper producer's stock valued at $75,000 after purchasing an additional 2,638 shares during the period. 62.85% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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Barrick Gold Stock Performance

GOLD traded down $0.14 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $17.51. 27,240,653 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 21,818,440. The company has a current ratio of 2.89, a quick ratio of 2.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. The stock has a market cap of $30.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.23, a PEG ratio of 0.44 and a beta of 0.55. Barrick Gold Corp has a 52 week low of $15.11 and a 52 week high of $21.35. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $18.26 and a 200 day moving average of $17.94.

Barrick Gold (NYSE:GOLD - Get Free Report) TSE: ABX last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The gold and copper producer reported $0.46 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.46. Barrick Gold had a net margin of 16.59% and a return on equity of 6.76%. On average, sell-side analysts forecast 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. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 28th were given a dividend of $0.10 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 28th. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.29%. Barrick Gold's dividend payout ratio is presently 32.52%.

Barrick Gold announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, February 12th that allows the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the gold and copper producer to buy up to 3.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are generally a sign that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on GOLD shares. Scotiabank upped their target price 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. Citigroup reduced their price objective on shares of Barrick Gold from $21.00 to $17.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, March 31st. Stifel Canada raised shares of Barrick Gold to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 19th. Bank of America lowered shares of Barrick Gold from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and cut their target price for the company from $21.00 to $18.00 in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Finally, TD Securities decreased their price target on Barrick Gold from $24.00 to $23.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Barrick Gold presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $23.79.

About Barrick Gold

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.