AngloGold Ashanti PLC $AU Shares Purchased by Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC

Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC raised its stake in AngloGold Ashanti PLC (NYSE:AU) by 15,115.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 454,950 shares of the mining company’s stock after buying an additional 451,960 shares during the quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC’s holdings in AngloGold Ashanti were worth $42,641,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of AngloGold Ashanti in the 3rd quarter worth about $25,000. UMB Bank n.a. lifted its position in AngloGold Ashanti by 129.0% in the 3rd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 490 shares of the mining company’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 276 shares during the last quarter. Optimum Investment Advisors acquired a new position in AngloGold Ashanti during the 3rd quarter valued at about $35,000. Ancora Advisors LLC acquired a new position in AngloGold Ashanti during the 3rd quarter valued at about $35,000. Finally, CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC grew its position in AngloGold Ashanti by 33.4% in the 3rd quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 599 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 150 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 36.09% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AU has been the topic of several analyst reports. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of AngloGold Ashanti from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, December 13th. Zacks Research lowered AngloGold Ashanti from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, February 23rd. Citigroup raised their target price on AngloGold Ashanti from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on AngloGold Ashanti from $128.00 to $131.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 3rd. Finally, Scotiabank reduced their price target on AngloGold Ashanti from $134.00 to $133.00 and set a “sector outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, AngloGold Ashanti currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $100.33.

AngloGold Ashanti Stock Up 6.6%

AngloGold Ashanti stock opened at $85.31 on Tuesday. AngloGold Ashanti PLC has a 52 week low of $31.91 and a 52 week high of $129.14. The stock has a market cap of $43.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.44 and a beta of 0.55. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $105.76 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $87.13. The company has a current ratio of 2.87, a quick ratio of 2.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20.

AngloGold Ashanti (NYSE:AU) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, February 20th. The mining company reported $1.90 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.90. The company had revenue of $3.07 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.99 billion. AngloGold Ashanti had a net margin of 26.65% and a return on equity of 29.11%. On average, analysts expect that AngloGold Ashanti PLC will post 3.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AngloGold Ashanti Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 27th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 13th will be given a $0.173 dividend. This represents a $0.69 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 13th. AngloGold Ashanti’s dividend payout ratio is 133.33%.

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.