William Blair Investment Management LLC Buys 42,091 Shares of Aura Minerals Inc. $AUGO

William Blair Investment Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Aura Minerals Inc. (NASDAQ:AUGO) by 9.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 496,303 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 42,091 shares during the period. William Blair Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Aura Minerals were worth $25,021,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Global Retirement Partners LLC bought a new position in Aura Minerals during the fourth quarter valued at about $34,000. Handelsbanken Fonder AB acquired a new stake in shares of Aura Minerals in the fourth quarter valued at about $464,000. HighTower Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Aura Minerals in the fourth quarter worth about $849,000. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL bought a new position in shares of Aura Minerals in the fourth quarter worth about $248,000. Finally, Ashoka WhiteOak Capital Pte Ltd increased its stake in shares of Aura Minerals by 270.3% in the fourth quarter. Ashoka WhiteOak Capital Pte Ltd now owns 87,030 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,425,000 after purchasing an additional 63,530 shares during the period.

Insider Transactions at Aura Minerals

In related news, CEO Rodrigo Cardoso Barbosa sold 55,000 shares of Aura Minerals stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $82.63, for a total transaction of $4,544,650.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 739,745 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $61,125,129.35. This trade represents a 6.92% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Mauad Bruno Sousa sold 38,384 shares of Aura Minerals stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $83.95, for a total value of $3,222,336.80. Following the sale, the director directly owned 576,973 shares in the company, valued at approximately $48,436,883.35. This trade represents a 6.24% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 168,384 shares of company stock worth $13,619,737.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently weighed in on AUGO shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. initiated coverage on Aura Minerals in a research note on Wednesday, February 25th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $105.00 target price for the company. Zacks Research lowered Aura Minerals from a “strong-buy” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Monday, April 27th. Wall Street Zen raised Aura Minerals from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, May 2nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised Aura Minerals from a “hold (c)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Thursday. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $67.60.

Aura Minerals Price Performance

AUGO stock opened at $72.58 on Tuesday. Aura Minerals Inc. has a twelve month low of $21.01 and a twelve month high of $110.32. The company has a market cap of $6.08 billion and a PE ratio of 67.20. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $83.69 and its 200 day simple moving average is $66.51. The company has a quick ratio of 0.75, a current ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03.

Aura Minerals (NASDAQ:AUGO) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, May 20th. The company reported $999.00 earnings per share for the quarter. Aura Minerals had a return on equity of 111.96% and a net margin of 7.80%. On average, research analysts anticipate that Aura Minerals Inc. will post 10.08 earnings per share for the current year.

Aura Minerals Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 26th. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 19th will be given a dividend of $0.78 per share. This represents a $3.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.3%. This is a boost from Aura Minerals’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.66. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 19th. Aura Minerals’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 288.89%.

Aura Minerals Company Profile

We are an Americas gold and copper production company with a significant portfolio of mining operations. Our mission is to deliver long-term value by unlocking operational efficiencies, responsibly growing our portfolio with a focus on return on invested capital, responsible mining practices and a commitment to sustainability. We operate with a decentralized culture, supported by a lean corporate team that ensures agile and dynamic management and decision-making processes, focused on high operational sustainability compliance standards.