AngloGold Ashanti (NYSE:AU) Shares Gap Up - What's Next?

Shares of AngloGold Ashanti plc (NYSE:AU - Get Free Report) gapped up before the market opened on Monday . The stock had previously closed at $43.81, but opened at $45.54. AngloGold Ashanti shares last traded at $47.47, with a volume of 1,018,735 shares traded.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. HSBC reissued a "reduce" rating and issued a $35.00 target price on shares of AngloGold Ashanti in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. Scotiabank raised their target price 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 downgraded AngloGold Ashanti from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Sunday, June 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on AngloGold Ashanti from $33.00 to $53.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, April 28th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on shares of AngloGold Ashanti from $39.00 to $41.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, April 4th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $41.30.

AngloGold Ashanti Trading Down 2.4%

The company has a market capitalization of $19.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.12 and a beta of 0.49. The company has a current ratio of 1.73, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46. The business's 50 day moving average price is $41.42 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $33.01.

AngloGold Ashanti (NYSE:AU - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, May 9th. The mining company reported $0.88 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. The company had revenue of $1.93 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.84 billion. On average, equities analysts predict that AngloGold Ashanti plc will post 3.83 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AngloGold Ashanti Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced a dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 13th. Investors of record on Monday, June 2nd will be given a dividend of $0.125 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 30th. This represents a yield of 1.14%. AngloGold Ashanti's dividend payout ratio is presently 16.45%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On AngloGold Ashanti

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of AngloGold Ashanti by 22.9% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 20,857,324 shares of the mining company's stock worth $467,795,000 after purchasing an additional 3,882,283 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in shares of AngloGold Ashanti by 274.8% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 5,133,744 shares of the mining company's stock worth $118,448,000 after acquiring an additional 3,764,165 shares during the period. Marshall Wace LLP boosted its holdings in AngloGold Ashanti by 3,767.1% in the fourth quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 2,751,410 shares of the mining company's stock valued at $63,503,000 after acquiring an additional 2,680,261 shares during the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp boosted its holdings in AngloGold Ashanti by 10.9% in the fourth quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 25,411,814 shares of the mining company's stock valued at $586,504,000 after acquiring an additional 2,491,130 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Carrhae Capital LLP increased its position in AngloGold Ashanti by 170.0% during the 4th quarter. Carrhae Capital LLP now owns 3,459,193 shares of the mining company's stock valued at $79,838,000 after purchasing an additional 2,177,783 shares during the period. 36.09% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.