AngloGold Ashanti (NYSE:AU) Raised to "Buy" at Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Analysts at Wall Street Zen upgraded AngloGold Ashanti from a "hold" to a "buy" rating, indicating positive sentiment towards the company's stock.
• JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised the target price for AngloGold Ashanti from $58.00 to $63.00, while other ratings vary from "strong sell" to "buy." The current consensus rating remains "hold" with a price target of $49.60.
• AngloGold Ashanti reported a net margin of 23.60% with quarterly earnings of $1.25 per share, missing estimates by $0.06 but exceeding revenue expectations at $2.45 billion.

AngloGold Ashanti (NYSE:AU - Get Free Report) was upgraded by research analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note issued to investors on Friday.

Other analysts have also issued research reports about the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on AngloGold Ashanti from $58.00 to $63.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. Zacks Research lowered AngloGold Ashanti from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a report on Friday, August 29th. Roth Capital reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of AngloGold Ashanti in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Finally, Scotiabank reissued a "sector perform" rating and set a $55.00 target price on shares of AngloGold Ashanti in a research report on Monday, August 11th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $49.60.

AngloGold Ashanti Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:AU traded up $2.47 on Friday, reaching $68.27. 3,413,821 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,481,506. AngloGold Ashanti has a fifty-two week low of $22.45 and a fifty-two week high of $69.98. The company's 50 day moving average is $57.74 and its 200-day moving average is $47.62. The stock has a market capitalization of $28.65 billion, a PE ratio of 18.16 and a beta of 0.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a current ratio of 2.99 and a quick ratio of 2.22.

AngloGold Ashanti (NYSE:AU - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, August 1st. The mining company reported $1.25 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.31 by ($0.06). AngloGold Ashanti had a net margin of 23.60% and a return on equity of 22.54%. The company had revenue of $2.45 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.29 billion. As a group, analysts anticipate that AngloGold Ashanti will post 3.83 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On AngloGold Ashanti

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in AU. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its holdings in AngloGold Ashanti by 2.1% during the 1st quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 11,353 shares of the mining company's stock valued at $424,000 after buying an additional 235 shares during the last quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. raised its holdings in AngloGold Ashanti by 30.3% during the 2nd quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 1,023 shares of the mining company's stock valued at $47,000 after buying an additional 238 shares during the last quarter. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL raised its holdings in AngloGold Ashanti by 0.3% during the 2nd quarter. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL now owns 91,793 shares of the mining company's stock valued at $4,183,000 after buying an additional 285 shares during the last quarter. Tidal Investments LLC raised its holdings in AngloGold Ashanti by 2.1% during the 2nd quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 14,878 shares of the mining company's stock valued at $678,000 after buying an additional 311 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Corient Private Wealth LLC raised its holdings in AngloGold Ashanti by 2.1% during the 2nd quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 16,747 shares of the mining company's stock valued at $763,000 after buying an additional 342 shares during the last quarter. 36.09% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About AngloGold Ashanti

AngloGold Ashanti plc operates as a gold mining company in Africa, Australia, and the Americas. The company primarily explores for gold, as well as produces silver and sulphuric acid as by-products. Its flagship property is a 100% owned Geita mine located in the Lake Victoria goldfields of the Mwanza region in north-western Tanzania.

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