AngloGold Ashanti PLC (NYSE:AU) Receives Consensus Rating of "Hold" from Analysts

Key Points

• AngloGold Ashanti PLC has been rated with a consensus of "Hold" by analysts, with two sell ratings, one hold, and four buy ratings among the seven firms covering the stock.
• The company recently increased its semi-annual dividend to $0.80 per share, representing a yield of 610.0%, up from the previous dividend of $0.69.
• In the latest quarterly earnings report, AngloGold Ashanti reported $1.25 EPS, missing the consensus estimate of $1.31, although it achieved revenues of $2.45 billion, exceeding expected amounts.

AngloGold Ashanti PLC (NYSE:AU - Get Free Report) has been assigned an average recommendation of "Hold" from the seven ratings firms that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price objective among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $49.60.

A number of research firms recently issued reports on AU. Scotiabank reaffirmed a "sector perform" rating and issued a $55.00 target price on shares of AngloGold Ashanti in a research report on Monday, August 11th. Wall Street Zen lowered AngloGold Ashanti from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on AngloGold Ashanti from $58.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 15th. Zacks Research downgraded AngloGold Ashanti from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a report on Friday, August 29th. Finally, Roth Capital restated a "buy" rating on shares of AngloGold Ashanti in a report on Friday, August 1st.

AngloGold Ashanti Trading Up 1.1%

AU opened at $66.30 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $27.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.63 and a beta of 0.53. AngloGold Ashanti has a 12 month low of $22.45 and a 12 month high of $66.45. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $53.77 and its 200 day simple moving average is $45.32. The company has a current ratio of 2.99, a quick ratio of 2.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22.

AngloGold Ashanti (NYSE:AU - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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 net margin of 23.60% and a return on equity of 22.54%. The company had revenue of $2.45 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.29 billion. As a group, research analysts anticipate that AngloGold Ashanti will post 3.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AngloGold Ashanti Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 5th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 22nd were paid a dividend of $0.80 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 22nd. This represents a dividend yield of 610.0%. This is a boost from AngloGold Ashanti's previous semi-annual dividend of $0.69. AngloGold Ashanti's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 85.11%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On AngloGold Ashanti

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of AU. State Street Corp raised its holdings in shares of AngloGold Ashanti by 1,175.7% in the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 4,967,173 shares of the mining company's stock valued at $226,354,000 after purchasing an additional 4,577,807 shares during the period. Acadian Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of AngloGold Ashanti by 1,767.5% in the 2nd quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 2,788,123 shares of the mining company's stock valued at $127,027,000 after purchasing an additional 2,638,823 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of AngloGold Ashanti by 274.6% in the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,137,721 shares of the mining company's stock valued at $142,986,000 after purchasing an additional 2,300,204 shares during the period. Coronation Fund Managers Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of AngloGold Ashanti in the 1st quarter valued at about $63,186,000. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of AngloGold Ashanti in the 2nd quarter valued at about $74,039,000. 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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