B2Gold (NYSE:BTG) Shares Gap Down - Here's What Happened

Shares of B2Gold Corp. (NYSE:BTG - Get Free Report) gapped down before the market opened on Friday . The stock had previously closed at $3.65, but opened at $3.51. B2Gold shares last traded at $3.53, with a volume of 12,404,758 shares trading hands.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently commented on the company. National Bankshares restated an "outperform" rating on shares of B2Gold in a report on Tuesday, June 24th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of B2Gold from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 8th. CIBC upped their target price on shares of B2Gold from $3.30 to $3.60 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, March 20th. Cormark raised shares of B2Gold from a "hold" rating to a "moderate buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. Finally, Raymond James Financial assumed coverage on shares of B2Gold in a research report on Monday. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $4.50 price objective for the company. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating, four have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $4.21.

B2Gold Stock Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $4.77 billion, a P/E ratio of -7.52, a P/E/G ratio of 0.33 and a beta of 0.44. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $3.35 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $2.93. The company has a quick ratio of 1.08, a current ratio of 1.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07.

B2Gold (NYSE:BTG - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 7th. The company reported $0.09 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.08 by $0.01. B2Gold had a positive return on equity of 5.65% and a negative net margin of 33.12%. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.06 EPS. The company's revenue was up 15.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that B2Gold Corp. will post 0.4 EPS for the current fiscal year.

B2Gold Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 24th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, June 11th were paid a dividend of $0.02 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, June 11th. This represents a $0.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.22%. B2Gold's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -17.02%.

Institutional Trading of B2Gold

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC raised its stake in B2Gold by 89.3% in the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 2,707,775 shares of the company's stock valued at $7,717,000 after purchasing an additional 1,277,357 shares in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its holdings in B2Gold by 181.7% in the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 8,158,787 shares of the company's stock valued at $23,253,000 after buying an additional 5,262,266 shares during the period. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd acquired a new position in shares of B2Gold in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $238,000. Amundi lifted its holdings in shares of B2Gold by 33.3% during the 1st quarter. Amundi now owns 10,849,897 shares of the company's stock worth $31,682,000 after acquiring an additional 2,710,857 shares during the period. Finally, Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC acquired a new stake in shares of B2Gold during the 1st quarter worth approximately $2,342,000. 61.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

B2Gold Company Profile

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.