Geode Capital Management LLC Buys 193,664 Shares of AngloGold Ashanti plc (NYSE:AU)

Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in AngloGold Ashanti plc (NYSE:AU - Free Report) by 59.2% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 520,772 shares of the mining company's stock after purchasing an additional 193,664 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC owned about 0.12% of AngloGold Ashanti worth $12,019,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in AU. Whittier Trust Co. bought a new position in AngloGold Ashanti in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in AngloGold Ashanti by 210.6% in the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,174 shares of the mining company's stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 796 shares in the last quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in AngloGold Ashanti in the 4th quarter valued at $32,000. R Squared Ltd acquired a new position in AngloGold Ashanti in the 4th quarter worth $36,000. Finally, Decker Retirement Planning Inc. bought a new position in AngloGold Ashanti during the 4th quarter worth about $69,000. 36.09% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

AngloGold Ashanti Stock Down 2.5 %

Shares of NYSE:AU traded down $1.01 during trading on Friday, hitting $39.55. 2,550,384 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,490,541. The stock has a market cap of $16.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.36 and a beta of 0.81. The company has a current ratio of 1.73, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46. AngloGold Ashanti plc has a fifty-two week low of $22.13 and a fifty-two week high of $46.90. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $35.55 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $29.93.

AngloGold Ashanti (NYSE:AU - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 19th. The mining company reported $0.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.99 by ($0.10). The business had revenue of $1.75 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.75 billion. As a group, research analysts anticipate that AngloGold Ashanti plc will post 3.83 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AngloGold Ashanti Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th were given a $0.69 dividend. This represents a dividend yield of 2.8%. This is a boost from AngloGold Ashanti's previous semi-annual dividend of $0.22. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 14th. AngloGold Ashanti's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 43.13%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AU has been the subject of several recent research reports. Scotiabank upped their price objective on AngloGold Ashanti from $34.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Monday, April 14th. StockNews.com raised AngloGold Ashanti from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 3rd. HSBC reiterated a "reduce" rating and issued a $35.00 price objective on shares of AngloGold Ashanti in a report on Thursday, April 17th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on shares of AngloGold Ashanti from $39.00 to $41.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, April 4th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, AngloGold Ashanti has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $36.80.

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.