B2Gold Corp. (NYSE:BTG) Receives Average Recommendation of "Hold" from Analysts

Key Points

• B2Gold Corp. (NYSE:BTG) has received an average analyst recommendation of "Hold", with one sell, five hold, two buy, and one strong buy ratings from nine analysts.
• The company's recent quarterly earnings fell slightly below expectations, reporting $0.12 per share against a consensus estimate of $0.13, despite a 40.5% increase in year-over-year revenue.
• B2Gold declared a quarterly dividend of $0.02, with an annualized yield of 2.0%, reflecting a payout ratio of -22.86%.

B2Gold Corp. (NYSE:BTG - Get Free Report) has been given a consensus recommendation of "Hold" by the nine ratings firms that are covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month target price among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $4.3125.

BTG has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Zacks Research cut B2Gold from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 13th. Wall Street Zen upgraded B2Gold from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 8th. National Bankshares reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of B2Gold in a research note on Wednesday, July 16th. CIBC reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $4.00 price objective (up previously from $3.60) on shares of B2Gold in a research note on Tuesday, July 15th. Finally, Raymond James Financial upgraded B2Gold to a "moderate buy" rating and set a $4.50 price objective for the company in a research note on Monday, June 30th.

B2Gold Trading Down 0.5%

Shares of NYSE:BTG traded down $0.02 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $4.04. 24,326,354 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 41,353,348. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $3.64 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $3.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a current ratio of 1.83 and a quick ratio of 1.08. The stock has a market cap of $5.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -8.42, a P/E/G ratio of 0.33 and a beta of 0.39. B2Gold has a fifty-two week low of $2.20 and a fifty-two week high of $4.10.

B2Gold (NYSE:BTG - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The company reported $0.12 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.13 by ($0.01). B2Gold had a negative net margin of 33.12% and a positive return on equity of 5.65%. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.06 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 40.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that B2Gold will post 0.4 EPS for the current fiscal year.

B2Gold Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 23rd. Investors of record on Wednesday, September 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.02 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, September 10th. This represents a $0.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.0%. B2Gold's payout ratio is presently -22.86%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On B2Gold

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC lifted its stake in B2Gold by 875.0% during the second quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 9,750 shares of the company's stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 8,750 shares during the last quarter. Independent Wealth Network Inc. acquired a new position in B2Gold during the first quarter worth approximately $28,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in B2Gold during the second quarter worth approximately $36,000. Cantor Fitzgerald L. P. acquired a new position in B2Gold during the fourth quarter worth approximately $25,000. Finally, Sagard Holdings Management Inc. acquired a new position in B2Gold during the second quarter worth approximately $39,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 61.40% of the company's stock.

About B2Gold

B2Gold Corp. operates as a gold producer company. It operates the Fekola Mine in Mali, the Masbate Mine in the Philippines, and the Otjikoto Mine in Namibia. The company also has an 100% interest in the Gramalote gold project in Colombia; 24% interest in the Calibre Mining Corp.; and approximately 19% interest in BeMetals Corp.