Scotiabank Issues Positive Forecast for AngloGold Ashanti (NYSE:AU) Stock Price

AngloGold Ashanti (NYSE:AU) had its price objective lifted by Scotiabank from $34.00 to $42.00 in a research report released on Monday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a sector perform rating on the mining company’s stock.

Other analysts have also recently issued reports about the stock. StockNews.com raised shares of AngloGold Ashanti from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 3rd. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on AngloGold Ashanti from $39.00 to $41.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, April 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, AngloGold Ashanti presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $37.25.

AngloGold Ashanti Stock Performance

NYSE:AU opened at $42.62 on Monday. AngloGold Ashanti has a 12-month low of $21.65 and a 12-month high of $43.23. The firm has a market capitalization of $17.89 billion, a PE ratio of 13.32 and a beta of 0.81. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $33.72 and a 200 day moving average price of $28.96. The company has a quick ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 1.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46.

AngloGold Ashanti (NYSE:AU) last announced its quarterly earnings results 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 during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.75 billion. Research analysts anticipate that AngloGold Ashanti will post 3.83 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AngloGold Ashanti Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th were paid a $0.69 dividend. This represents a dividend yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 14th. This is a positive change from AngloGold Ashanti’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.22. AngloGold Ashanti’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 43.13%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On AngloGold Ashanti

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of AU. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its stake in shares of AngloGold Ashanti by 378.2% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 4,782 shares of the mining company’s stock valued at $127,000 after purchasing an additional 3,782 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in AngloGold Ashanti during the 4th quarter worth approximately $406,000. Van ECK Associates Corp grew its holdings in AngloGold Ashanti by 10.9% during the fourth quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 25,411,814 shares of the mining company’s stock valued at $586,504,000 after purchasing an additional 2,491,130 shares during the period. Ninety One UK Ltd bought a new stake in AngloGold Ashanti in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $45,043,000. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of AngloGold Ashanti by 47.3% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 381,627 shares of the mining company’s stock valued at $8,808,000 after buying an additional 122,507 shares during the period. 36.09% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.