AngloGold Ashanti (NYSE:AU) Sets New 52-Week High Following Dividend Announcement

Shares of AngloGold Ashanti PLC (NYSE:AU) reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Monday after the company announced a dividend. The stock traded as high as $121.92 and last traded at $120.4240, with a volume of 1388707 shares. The stock had previously closed at $114.25.

The newly announced dividend which will be paid on Friday, March 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 13th will be given a dividend of $0.173 per share. This represents a $0.69 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 13th. AngloGold Ashanti’s payout ratio is presently 70.13%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently commented on AU shares. Zacks Research raised AngloGold Ashanti from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of AngloGold Ashanti from $128.00 to $131.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 3rd. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of AngloGold Ashanti in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of AngloGold Ashanti from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 20th. Finally, Scotiabank raised their price objective on AngloGold Ashanti from $92.00 to $131.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, January 26th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $100.00.

AngloGold Ashanti Stock Performance

The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $97.79 and a 200-day simple moving average of $79.51. The stock has a market cap of $60.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.07 and a beta of 0.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a quick ratio of 1.98 and a current ratio of 2.58.

AngloGold Ashanti (NYSE:AU) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, February 20th. The mining company reported $1.90 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $1.90. The company had revenue of $3.07 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.99 billion. AngloGold Ashanti had a return on equity of 29.70% and a net margin of 26.65%. On average, equities analysts expect that AngloGold Ashanti PLC will post 3.83 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Trading of AngloGold Ashanti

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Ninety One SA Pty Ltd acquired a new position in AngloGold Ashanti during the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,380,472,000. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership increased its holdings in shares of AngloGold Ashanti by 406.9% during the 4th quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 6,288,253 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $539,119,000 after acquiring an additional 5,047,686 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in AngloGold Ashanti in the 4th quarter valued at $426,477,000. State Street Corp lifted its holdings in AngloGold Ashanti by 1,175.7% during the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 4,967,173 shares of the mining company’s stock valued at $226,354,000 after purchasing an additional 4,577,807 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Acadian Asset Management LLC boosted its position in AngloGold Ashanti by 1,767.5% during the second quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 2,788,123 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $127,027,000 after purchasing an additional 2,638,823 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 36.09% of the company’s stock.

About AngloGold Ashanti

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.