AngloGold Ashanti PLC (NYSE:AU) Announces $0.72 Quarterly Dividend

AngloGold Ashanti PLC (NYSE:AU) declared a quarterly dividend on Friday, July 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 21st will be given a dividend of 0.72 per share by the mining company on Friday, September 4th. This represents a c) annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.6%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 21st.

AngloGold Ashanti has increased its dividend payment by an average of 1.0%per year over the last three years. AngloGold Ashanti has a dividend payout ratio of 145.0% indicating that the company cannot currently cover its dividend with earnings alone and is relying on its balance sheet to cover its dividend payments. Analysts expect AngloGold Ashanti to earn $7.62 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $4.64 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 60.9%.

AngloGold Ashanti Price Performance

Shares of AU traded down $3.16 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $79.17. 7,344,615 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,992,036. The stock has a market cap of $39.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.61 and a beta of 0.65. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $84.53 and a 200-day moving average of $96.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19, a quick ratio of 2.11 and a current ratio of 2.71. AngloGold Ashanti has a 52 week low of $45.36 and a 52 week high of $129.14.

AngloGold Ashanti (NYSE:AU) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The mining company reported $1.98 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.03 by ($0.05). The firm had revenue of $3.10 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.20 billion. AngloGold Ashanti had a return on equity of 36.41% and a net margin of 31.11%. On average, analysts forecast that AngloGold Ashanti will post 8.23 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have weighed in on AU shares. Weiss Ratings cut AngloGold Ashanti from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Monday, June 1st. Freedom Capital raised AngloGold Ashanti to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, June 26th. Roth Capital lowered their target price on AngloGold Ashanti from $121.00 to $110.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, June 24th. Citigroup cut their target price on shares of AngloGold Ashanti from $130.00 to $125.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their price target on shares of AngloGold Ashanti from $114.00 to $111.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, July 9th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $110.50.

AngloGold Ashanti Company Profile

AngloGold Ashanti is a global gold mining company engaged in the exploration, development, production, processing and sale of gold. Headquartered in Johannesburg, South Africa, the company’s core activities span the full mining value chain from greenfield exploration and mine development through to ore processing and rehabilitation. Gold is the primary commodity produced, with individual operations sometimes yielding other by‑products depending on local geology and processing methods.

The company was formed in 2004 through the merger of AngloGold and Ashanti Goldfields, creating a diversified international gold producer.