AngloGold Ashanti PLC (NYSE:AU) Given Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

AngloGold Ashanti PLC (NYSE:AU) has received an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the seven ratings firms that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, one has given a hold recommendation and five have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year target price among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $112.00.

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on AU shares. Roth Mkm reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $121.00 target price on shares of AngloGold Ashanti in a research note on Monday, May 11th. Zacks Research downgraded shares of AngloGold Ashanti from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, February 23rd. Scotiabank reduced their price target on shares of AngloGold Ashanti from $134.00 to $133.00 and set a “sector outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, March 20th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of AngloGold Ashanti from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, May 2nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of AngloGold Ashanti from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Friday, May 15th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On AngloGold Ashanti

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of AU. Ascentis Independent Advisors acquired a new position in shares of AngloGold Ashanti during the first quarter valued at $26,000. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT acquired a new position in AngloGold Ashanti during the 4th quarter worth $31,000. UMB Bank n.a. boosted its position in AngloGold Ashanti by 129.0% during the 3rd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 490 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 276 shares during the period. Garton & Associates Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new position in AngloGold Ashanti during the 4th quarter worth $34,000. Finally, Ancora Advisors LLC acquired a new position in AngloGold Ashanti during the 3rd quarter worth $35,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 36.09% of the company’s stock.

AngloGold Ashanti Price Performance

Shares of NYSE AU opened at $90.58 on Friday. AngloGold Ashanti has a twelve month low of $42.62 and a twelve month high of $129.14. The company has a current ratio of 2.87, a quick ratio of 2.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20. The company has a market capitalization of $45.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.28 and a beta of 0.60. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $97.75 and a 200-day simple moving average of $95.72.

AngloGold Ashanti (NYSE:AU) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, May 8th. The mining company reported $2.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.27 by $0.25. AngloGold Ashanti had a return on equity of 37.17% and a net margin of 31.11%.The business had revenue of $3.24 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.26 billion. As a group, equities research analysts expect that AngloGold Ashanti will post 9.26 earnings per share for the current year.

AngloGold Ashanti Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 12th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 29th will be issued a dividend of $1.16 per share. This represents a $4.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.1%. This is a positive change from AngloGold Ashanti’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.17. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 29th. AngloGold Ashanti’s dividend payout ratio is presently 101.47%.

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.