Axa S.A. Raises Position in AngloGold Ashanti plc (NYSE:AU)

Axa S.A. increased its position in shares of AngloGold Ashanti plc (NYSE:AU - Free Report) by 30.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 345,300 shares of the mining company's stock after purchasing an additional 80,975 shares during the period. Axa S.A. owned approximately 0.08% of AngloGold Ashanti worth $7,970,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. NewEdge Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of AngloGold Ashanti by 9.4% in the 4th quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 5,799 shares of the mining company's stock valued at $134,000 after buying an additional 500 shares during the period. Sprott Inc. raised its position in AngloGold Ashanti by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Sprott Inc. now owns 91,168 shares of the mining company's stock worth $2,104,000 after acquiring an additional 662 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in AngloGold Ashanti by 210.6% in the fourth 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 during the period. Quadrant Capital Group LLC boosted its position in shares of AngloGold Ashanti by 10.5% during the 4th quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 8,860 shares of the mining company's stock worth $204,000 after purchasing an additional 844 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Rhumbline Advisers grew its stake in shares of AngloGold Ashanti by 9.3% during the 4th quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 10,745 shares of the mining company's stock worth $248,000 after purchasing an additional 910 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 36.09% of the company's stock.

AngloGold Ashanti Price Performance

AU stock opened at $42.11 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a current ratio of 1.73. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $36.70 and its 200 day moving average price is $30.52. The firm has a market cap of $17.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.16 and a beta of 0.48. AngloGold Ashanti plc has a 1 year low of $22.13 and a 1 year high of $46.90.

AngloGold Ashanti (NYSE:AU - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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 firm had revenue of $1.75 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.75 billion. On average, sell-side analysts expect that AngloGold Ashanti plc will post 3.83 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AngloGold Ashanti Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th were issued a dividend of $0.69 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 14th. This is an increase from AngloGold Ashanti's previous semi-annual dividend of $0.22. This represents a dividend yield of 2.8%. AngloGold Ashanti's payout ratio is 43.13%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently commented on AU shares. HSBC reiterated a "reduce" rating and issued a $35.00 price objective on shares of AngloGold Ashanti in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on AngloGold Ashanti from $33.00 to $53.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, April 28th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on AngloGold Ashanti from $39.00 to $41.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, April 4th. Scotiabank boosted their target price 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. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded AngloGold Ashanti from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 3rd. One investment 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. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $41.00.

AngloGold Ashanti Profile

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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