Barrick Gold (NYSE:GOLD) Trading Down 1% - Here's Why

Barrick Gold Corp (NYSE:GOLD - Get Free Report) TSE: ABX traded down 1% during trading on Tuesday . The company traded as low as $20.13 and last traded at $20.25. 9,965,818 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 54% from the average session volume of 21,627,152 shares. The stock had previously closed at $20.45.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on GOLD shares. National Bank Financial upgraded shares of Barrick Gold to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, March 21st. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on shares of Barrick Gold from $22.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, April 4th. National Bankshares restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Barrick Gold in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. StockNews.com upgraded Barrick Gold from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, April 5th. Finally, Scotiabank boosted their price objective on Barrick Gold from $20.00 to $22.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Monday, April 14th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $24.05.

Barrick Gold Trading Down 1.9 %

The stock has a market capitalization of $32.76 billion, a PE ratio of 15.49, a P/E/G ratio of 0.44 and a beta of 0.55. The company's 50 day moving average price is $18.95 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $17.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 2.89 and a quick ratio of 2.15.

Barrick Gold (NYSE:GOLD - Get Free Report) TSE: ABX last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The gold and copper producer reported $0.46 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts' consensus estimates of $0.46. Barrick Gold had a net margin of 16.59% and a return on equity of 6.76%. As a group, analysts expect that Barrick Gold Corp will post 1.47 earnings per share for the current year.

Barrick Gold Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 28th were paid a $0.10 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 28th. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.10%. Barrick Gold's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 32.52%.

Barrick Gold declared that its board has approved a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, February 12th that allows the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the gold and copper producer to repurchase up to 3.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually a sign that the company's board believes its stock is undervalued.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Barrick Gold

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in GOLD. Van ECK Associates Corp boosted its stake in shares of Barrick Gold by 2.1% in the fourth quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 76,299,834 shares of the gold and copper producer's stock valued at $1,182,641,000 after purchasing an additional 1,563,361 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in Barrick Gold by 1.8% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 68,358,533 shares of the gold and copper producer's stock valued at $1,060,036,000 after buying an additional 1,195,585 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its stake in shares of Barrick Gold by 17.5% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 64,310,800 shares of the gold and copper producer's stock worth $996,802,000 after acquiring an additional 9,598,292 shares in the last quarter. Capital International Investors increased its holdings in Barrick Gold by 136.1% during the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 33,293,792 shares of the gold and copper producer's stock worth $516,055,000 after purchasing an additional 19,189,830 shares during the period. Finally, Mackenzie Financial Corp raised its position in Barrick Gold by 1.9% in the 4th quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 15,318,376 shares of the gold and copper producer's stock valued at $237,280,000 after purchasing an additional 278,292 shares in the last quarter. 62.85% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Barrick Gold

Barrick Gold Corporation is a sector-leading gold and copper producer.  Its shares trade on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol GOLD and on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbol ABX.   In January 2019 Barrick merged with Randgold Resources and in July that year it combined its gold mines in Nevada, USA, with those of Newmont Corporation in a joint venture, Nevada Gold Mines, which is majority-owned and operated by Barrick.