AngloGold Ashanti (NYSE:AU) Shares Gap Down - Time to Sell?

Key Points

• AngloGold Ashanti's shares gapped down significantly, opening at $69.31, down from the previous close of $75.29.
• Analysts have mixed ratings on the stock, with three giving it a Buy rating, three a Hold rating, and one a Sell rating, while the average target price is $58.00.
• The company recently increased its semi-annual dividend to $0.80 per share, up from $0.69, reflecting a strong yield and a high dividend payout ratio of 85.11%.

AngloGold Ashanti PLC (NYSE:AU - Get Free Report) gapped down prior to trading on Tuesday . The stock had previously closed at $75.29, but opened at $69.31. AngloGold Ashanti shares last traded at $68.28, with a volume of 1,543,307 shares trading hands.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Zacks Research raised shares of AngloGold Ashanti from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, September 29th. Scotiabank reaffirmed a "sector perform" rating and set a $55.00 target price on shares of AngloGold Ashanti in a report on Monday, August 11th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of AngloGold Ashanti from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, September 26th. Roth Capital set a $76.00 target price on shares of AngloGold Ashanti and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, October 3rd. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of AngloGold Ashanti in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, AngloGold Ashanti presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $58.00.

AngloGold Ashanti Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a current ratio of 2.99 and a quick ratio of 2.22. The company has a market capitalization of $28.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.88 and a beta of 0.53. The firm's 50-day moving average is $64.60 and its 200-day moving average is $52.10.

AngloGold Ashanti (NYSE:AU - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Friday, August 1st. The mining company reported $1.25 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.31 by ($0.06). AngloGold Ashanti had a return on equity of 22.54% and a net margin of 23.60%.The company had revenue of $2.45 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.29 billion. Analysts predict that AngloGold Ashanti PLC will post 3.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AngloGold Ashanti Increases Dividend

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

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. MJT & Associates Financial Advisory Group Inc. purchased a new position in AngloGold Ashanti during the 1st quarter worth approximately $30,000. Financial Management Professionals Inc. purchased a new position in shares of AngloGold Ashanti during the second quarter worth $30,000. SVB Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of AngloGold Ashanti during the first quarter worth $32,000. Optimum Investment Advisors purchased a new position in shares of AngloGold Ashanti during the third quarter worth $35,000. Finally, Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. raised its holdings in shares of AngloGold Ashanti by 30.3% during the second quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 1,023 shares of the mining company's stock worth $47,000 after purchasing an additional 238 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 36.09% of the company's stock.

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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