AngloGold Ashanti (NYSE:AU) Issues Earnings Results

Key Points

• AngloGold Ashanti reported earnings of $1.25 per share, missing analyst expectations of $1.31 by $0.06, despite revenue exceeding forecasts at $2.45 billion.
• The company's stock rose by 5.5% following the earnings report, and it has a market cap of $20.48 billion with a PE ratio of 12.98.
• AngloGold Ashanti announced a dividend of $0.125, reflecting a payout ratio of 16.45%, after shareholders received the payment on June 13.

AngloGold Ashanti (NYSE:AU - Get Free Report) released its quarterly earnings results on Friday. The mining company reported $1.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.31 by ($0.06), Zacks reports. AngloGold Ashanti had a return on equity of 24.25% and a net margin of 23.60%. The firm had revenue of $2.45 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.29 billion.

AngloGold Ashanti Price Performance

Shares of AU stock traded up $0.34 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $58.62. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,472,255 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,166,769. AngloGold Ashanti has a 1-year low of $22.45 and a 1-year high of $59.19. The company has a market cap of $24.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.60 and a beta of 0.46. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a quick ratio of 1.57 and a current ratio of 2.34. The firm's 50-day moving average is $47.67 and its two-hundred day moving average is $39.98.

AngloGold Ashanti Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 5th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 22nd will be paid a $0.80 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 22nd. This represents a dividend yield of 610.0%. This is a positive change from AngloGold Ashanti's previous semi-annual dividend of $0.69. AngloGold Ashanti's dividend payout ratio is currently 85.11%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AU has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of AngloGold Ashanti from $58.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. Scotiabank raised their price objective on shares of AngloGold Ashanti from $42.00 to $43.50 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a report on Monday, May 12th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of AngloGold Ashanti from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Sunday, June 1st. Roth Capital reissued a "buy" rating on shares of AngloGold Ashanti in a report on Friday, August 1st. Finally, HSBC reaffirmed a "reduce" rating and issued a $35.00 price target on shares of AngloGold Ashanti in a report on Thursday, April 17th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $45.08.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On AngloGold Ashanti

An institutional investor recently bought a new position in AngloGold Ashanti stock. Empowered Funds LLC bought a new position in AngloGold Ashanti PLC (NYSE:AU - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 8,651 shares of the mining company's stock, valued at approximately $321,000. 36.09% of the stock is currently 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.